Impalpable
by Ria Rose
Summary: When their car breaks down during a road trip through muggle America, the Trio bumps into the last person they ever wanted to see. But there's a side to Severus Snape that no one at Hogwarts knows about and he's about to give them one hell of a summer!
1. Guns, Roses, Beer, and Antics

**Title: **Impalpable

**Author: **Ria Rose

**Summary:**A summer road trip through Muggle America turns ill when the car that Ron, Hermione, and Harry have purchased breaks down. Walking to the nearest gas station, Harry encounters the last person he thought he ever wanted to see…and his 87 Camaro. But there's a side to Severus Snape that no one knows about: a free riding rebel that would rather don older rock tees than robes and still breaks rules wherever he can. Little do they know it, but the Golden Trio is in for one hell of a summer. - Summer after sixth Year - Non-HBP and DH compliant.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own ANYTHING identifiable to the Harry Potter world. J.K. Rowling gets that privilege. Anything you don't recognize, that shits all mine. And I will open up a heaping can of whoop-ass on anyone that tries to steal my shit. Thank you, come again!

**Just as a side note, so you all know, this story is also archives at the (Wonderful!) PotionsandSnitches[dot]net. I have several chapters written. I'm trying for a light and fluffy story with some drama to keep things interesting.**

**By the way**: I was a little shit and made this **contemporary**. Meaning, I moved this up about ten years to make life easy concerning what Harry listens to. Don't like, don't read. **Nah nah nah nah nahhhhh nah!**

**Chapter One: Guns, Roses, Beer, and Antics**

The heat was unbearable and though the beat up old Chevy may not have had air conditioning, it was quite apt to large windows and strong wind on their faces as they broke speed limits while racing down interstates. It was gloriously cooling in a free-living sort of way. But the car had broken down some 4 miles east of where Harry Potter was currently walking on I88 and the 70 MPH concocted wind had ceased. The exit ramp was looming closer and the 16-year-old reveled in the brief breezes he was gifted with as cars zoomed past him.

Hermione and Ron were both still with the car, Ron passed out in the back seat snoring away and Hermione keeping watch over their possessions. Harry had volunteered to be the poor schmuck to retrieve help, always the one with the hero complex. Starting down the exit ramp, Harry hastily wiped another bead of sweat from his forehead. 'A gas station,' he thought as an Exxon came into view, 'perfect.'

The last steps leading to the gas station were torture. All Harry wanted to do was use the American muggle change in his pocket to buy himself an ice cold Coke from the vending machine in front of the service station. Then, he'd enter into the air conditioning and call a tow truck.

It had started with a muggle movie. Fred, George, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Harry had gone to the theater in London only to become entranced by the idea of a road trip. And it couldn't be just anywhere; it had to be in America, just like the movie. And it had to be in an old Chevy. But, Fred and George had the shop to run and Ginny was too young. That left the three best friends and a road trip before their final year at Hogwarts sounded perfect. To Harry it was his last shot at normalcy. He knew, without a doubt, that this upcoming year could very well be his last.

Obtaining a muggle driving license wasn't hard at all and neither was buying the old car and 'putting it on the road.' True, the insurance they had to buy and the registration fees they had to pay were a pain, but it didn't take nearly as long as they had thought it would. The hard part was making it out of London without the Order or You-Know-Who knowing. But, when they finally did sneak away, it was two weeks of awesome anonymity on the country roads of the United States.

Then the car broke down.

With the service attendant nowhere to be seen, Harry pressed 5 quarters into the machine, selected the cola and instantly drank down half the bottle as soon as he picked it up.

Leaning against the outer wall of the station, Harry caught his breath from chugging the soda and surveyed his surroundings. A black Camaro pulled in and drove up to one of the pumps. From the driver's seat stepped a tall man with shoulder length black hair pulled back into a ponytail. He wore a fitted black tee, blue jeans held up by a black belt with silver belt buckle, and black boots. His face was hidden behind dark sunglasses.

With arms littered with tattoos and a black band covering most of his left forearm, the man swiped a credit card and began to fill his tank. There was something positively familiar about him that Harry couldn't place. But, it meant nothing to him; he was too hot to care and this guy was as good as any to help. The early July sun beat down upon the young wizard as he pushed himself off the wall and walked toward the man.

He did not notice Harry approaching as he leaned back against his car, clicked the nozzle so it would continue to fill without him holding it, and very daringly lit a cigarette. Propping one leg against the car, the man inhaled his cigarette and sighed contently. The pack of Marlboro Reds was left on the hood of the car next to a green Bic lighter.

"Excuse me, sir?" Harry spoke in his most polite tone.

The man exhaled the smoke from his mouth and turned to the voice. As soon as his eyes landed on the sweating teen approaching him, he stood up straight and immediately put his cigarette out. "Potter! What the bloody hell are you doing here?"

Harry froze. No. It couldn't be. "Professor Snape?" Disbelief was an understatement. Where were the billowing black robes? Where did the tattoos and the James Dean mannerisms come from? Bloody hell, what was he doing in America, of all places, and why was he driving a bloody Camaro and smoking muggle Cigarettes?

"Eloquent as usual, Potter." He slid his sunglasses off and peered at the teen. "Explanation, if you will."

"I…uh…" Well, if there was anyone who could help him and his friends, it was Snape (though, he knew that they were caught and in serious trouble), right? "Ron, Hermione, and I broke down up the road. On the interstate. I walked here for help."

"Oh, that perfectly explains why you're in America."

"We were on a road trip, sir. But the car started making this weird croaking noise and we pulled over but I think it's overheated or something because it won't start back up and I just need a phone to call a tow truck and-"

Snape held up his hand to silence him. The gas nozzle clicked off and he replaced the lever and closed his gas tank. "Get in. East or west of here?"

"Sir?"

"I'm aware that, though in America, they do still speak English here, do they not?"

"Yes, sir." Harry obliged and opened the passenger side door. He slid into the seat and sighed contently as Snape restarted the car and cold air blew from the vents.

"East or west, Potter?" He snapped, replacing his sunglasses onto his face.

"East, sir."

Popping a CD into the radio, Snape skipped up several songs and hit play. The music that came blaring out of the speakers only served to confuse the teen's perceptions of his professor even more. A guitar began, sliding up and down the scales, followed by drums. Snape beat out the tempo in his steering wheel, barely aware of the child seated next to him.

It was Snape beginning to sing along that really took Harry for a loop, "_She's got a smile that it seems to me reminds me of childhood memories_…"

"Sir?!" Harry - though he hated it - was quite used to and comfortable with his old image of his professor: the greasy bat of the dungeons. This was…unnerving. "Sir?" He repeated.

"Shh!" Snape scolded, as a guitar solo began, "Do not desecrate Guns 'N Roses by interrupting."

Harry's mouth dropped. What was this? "Who are you and what have you done with my potions professor?" Instead of answering, Snape just held up his hand, tapped his four fingers down against his thumb in a signal of a mouth shutting, and continued to sing along. "_Oh, whoa, whoa, sweet child o' mine!_" Harry wisely stayed quiet through the rest of the song.

As it ended, Snape skipped up two more songs and the blasting guitars made Harry nearly jump through his skin. They were nearing the break down site and as Snape pulled the car onto the shoulder, Harry could see that Ron was awake and sitting with Hermione on the hood of the car. They stood and walked warily toward the Camaro, only picking up pace when Harry stepped out, 'Hells Bells' still blaring from the speakers.

"Harry! Mate! We were getting worried!" Ron called out as he walked closer. "Who-" But he stopped speaking as Snape exited the car and pulled off his sunglasses.

"Bloody hell!"

"Beautifully spoken, Mr. Weasley. Now, if you would be so kind as to pop the hood of your car?" The Potions Master breezed past the two teens and stood by the hood of the Chevy, waiting.

Seeing that his friends were making no move to do so, Harry jogged over to the car, reached through the window, and popped open the hood.

Pulling out his wand, Snape did a quick diagnostic check on the engine and frowned. "You blew your head gasket. This car is as good as junk now."

"What?" Harry exclaimed, "Can't we fix it?"

"3,000 in American dollars. They'd have to take the whole engine apart to fix it. Are you willing to pay that?"

"No, sir."

"Figured as much." Snape sauntered over to the passenger side and opened the door. "Collect your stuff and put it in my car." He dictated as he opened up the glove box.

"Why?"

"If you wish to stay with a broken car, that's your prerogative, but I highly doubt Minerva would be pleased with me if I left her golden Gryffindors in the middle of the bloody highway!" Taking his keys, he began to scratch at the inside of the glove box.

Harry paused in grabbing his duffle from the backseat, "What are you doing?"

"Removing the V.I.N. number so we can leave the car here. This way it can't be easily traced back to you. Highway patrol would just as rather have it towed and junked instead of trying to find the owners."

"You've done this before?" Hermione, finally recovered from the shock of seeing her potions professor, said.

"These highways are littered with cars my friends and I dumped; I'm an expert." With an uncharacteristic grin, Snape shut the glove box and stood up. He tossed Ron his keys. "Open my trunk."

The redhead squeaked and did so, dumping his bag and pillow inside and helping Hermione with hers. After Harry had added his own to the trunk and had cleared the rest of the Chevy, he offered the two the rest of his Coke. Hermione declined, but Ron happily drank the rest.

Grabbing a screwdriver from his own glove box, Snape proceeded to remove the license plates. "As Potter was the one who walked to the gas station, he gets shot gun."

"Sir?"

Snape rolled his eyes at the redhead. "The front seat, Weasley."

"Such a wizard, Ron." Hermione giggled.

Huffing, Ron retorted, "So sorry I'm not up on muggle dialect, 'Mione. Wasn't exactly raised one, you know."

She shrugged and looked at Snape, "How do you know about this stuff? I never took you as the...well…muggle transportation type."

"There's much you do not know about me, Granger. Get in the car. It's too bloody hot out here and I'm late as it is." Snape said.

"Oi, where do you think he's going, mate?" Ron whispered to Harry as they watched Snape sit in the driver's seat. "Think he's going to the caverns we passed to recollect with the bats?"

Harry snickered, thinking of the billboards they passed that advertised caves to tourists. "Maybe he lives in them."

"I'm not deaf, you imbeciles. Get in the damn car." Their professor snapped. Squeaking again, Ron hurried into the backseat next to Hermione.

"Sorry, Professor." Harry said, taking his own seat.

But Snape just shrugged, they weren't at Hogwarts and no one other than his friends in America knew anything of him unless people recognized him through someone else. He could act himself here - he didn't have to scold anyone for rude comments he so often made himself. And, in truth, the comments about him living in the caverns and speaking with the bats were rather amusing - though he would never admit any of that to the three teens now seated in his precious Camaro.

"I am on my way to visit an old friend, yet seeing as how I now have three students with me…_we_ are now on _our_ way to see an old friend."

"But--"

"But nothing, Ms. Granger. I'm not canceling my plans for you three. I expect you will all be on your BEST behavior. You will use Georgie's phone to contact whomever about finding new means of transport, and hopefully be out of my hair by tomorrow."

The muttered 'Ew' from Ron in the backseat made Snape inwardly chuckle.

"You mean…you're not going to send us back?" Harry asked.

"You're safe here, as no one, now save me, know that you're in America." Harry's mouth hit the floor when Snape winked at him, "This is the type of rebelliousness I condone, Potter."

Clicking through the CD, Snape put on the same song he had first shocked Harry with. 'Sweet Child O' Mine' was easily read on the digital screen that was an obvious addition to the car - it was definitely not stock.

Reenacting itself from when Harry first started driving with Snape, the potions master beat out the drums on his steering wheel and sang along. His speed picked up as they entered back onto the highway, weaving around cars moving too slow for him. Harry, glancing at the speedometer, blanched when he saw it reaching near 90 miles per hour. "Sir?"

Snape briefly looked at the teen seated next to him. "Relax, Potter, I won't get pulled over by a cop."

"A speeding ticket is the least of our worries," Harry muttered as they once again sped around a slow moving car, cleanly cutting off the other in the lane next to them. A brief glance in the backseat saw Ron clenching the overhanging bar above the window, his knuckles white.

Snape laughed when he saw the redhead in his rear-view mirror. "The 'oh-shit' bar, marvelous invention."

"Oh shit is right! Slow down!"

But Snape only grinned and sped up, the speedometer hitting closer to 100 MPH with each passing second.

"Professor!" Ron screeched in fright.

"Potter, please explain the rules when this song is on."

Harry angled his body to see his friends, "We do not desecrate Guns 'N Roses by talking." He shrugged, not fully understanding this new side to their professor, but beginning to find it overly amusing - this wasn't the Snape they knew, but almost immediately knew that he liked this one better. A lot better.

"Five points to Gryffindor for the respect of Gun 'N Roses."

Harry grinned and began to tap out the beat on his lap. He failed to see the smile on his professor's face when the older man noticed his interest in the song. Hermione, however, did observe this and wondered just how much of their professor they really didn't know about. He was still sarcastic and somewhat insulting, but it wasn't as…'Well,' she mused, 'he isn't being as mean about it. It's almost like it's all in good fun.'

To say she was confused was an understatement, but Hermione wasn't a prefect or top witch of their class for nothing. She was going to figure this out, figure Snape out.

It was near dinnertime when Snape pulled into the driveway of a large white house. As soon as he pulled the keys from the ignition, the front door swung open and a muscular man in a white tee-shirt and black leather vest filled the doorway. His arms were even more decorated than Snape's and his grayed hair was cropped short on his head. "Sev! You son of a bitch! 'Bout God damned time!" The American accent shouted loudly. The man barreled down the steps and took Snape in a crushing bear hug.

"Had a bit of detour, Georgie." He gestured toward the three teens slowly getting out of the car. "I found three of my students stranded on 88, Minerva would have my head on a platter if she found out I left them there, they're in her house."

The other man laughed, "Hah! Minnie would never! Who would she torment if she killed you?"

Snape grinned, "Good point, if these weren't the infamous Golden Trio. Ronald Weasley, Hermione Granger, and Harry Potter," he pointed each teen out respectively, "And this is Georgie Bryce."

Georgie peered at each student and smiled in turn. When his gaze landed on Harry, he grinned. "The fucking savior of the world and the bane of Sevvy's existence, pleasure to meet you! You're my idol!"

He shook Harry's hand enthusiastically. "Huh?" Harry said.

"Anyone who can manage to annoy Sev as much as you do, earns my respect from the get go. You're up there with Minnie."

"Minnie…? Professor McGonagall?" The young boy couldn't even fathom ever calling the witch 'Minnie.'

"Come, come, everyone else is already here! I have the AC on, so you won't sweat your damn balls off," Georgie glanced at Hermione, "Figuratively speaking."

"Young ears," chastised Snape, "can we try for decent language?"

"Abso-fucking-lutely…NOT!" Grinning, Georgie led the four in the house, ushering them into the wide living room where three others were seated.

"Holy shit Sev, when did you have kids!?" cracked a curly haired blonde witch seated in an armchair. She pointed her wand at Snape, "Could've told me I was aunt, and then I could've started spoiling them rotten before this!"

"Lucy…these are NOT my children," he practically spit the word, "They are my students whose car had broken down."

"Aw, Severus, such a friggin' angel. Don't let the sarcasm sway you kids, he's a pussy cat."

Ron could barely imagine Snape as a 'pussy cat' but the woman was amusing nonetheless. "I'm Ron." He held his hand out to her. Instead of taking it, she stood and gave him a hug.

"'Name's Lucy! And look at you, brightest damn hair I've seen!" The tips of Ron's ears turned pink.

A wizard seated to the left laughed, "Lucy has a thing for redheads."

"Bloody hell!" Snape spewed, "He's 17 Luce, can we not?"

With a roll of her eyes she answered, "I already got a man. I just figured my daughter might want a shot at this good looking piece of meat." She grinned and her eyes caught Harry, "Oh, Merlin! And look at this one! Hey, Bay, your kid would like him!"

The wizard laughed, "She has been on the prowl." Harry blushed deeply.

Jena, a dark haired witch with her lips, nose, eyebrows, and just about every facial appendage pierced, was bouncing on her toes, obviously excited. She grinned at Hermione and winked. The young witch felt herself smile shyly, again wondering of this new side to her professor. These were not the friends she had thought he would be acquainted with.

"All right, so we know Big Red here is Ron," Lucy stated, "But what about this pretty lady?"

"My name is Hermione Granger." The teen spoke softly; she was overwhelmed by the people standing before her and Jena was still giggling and snickering like mad whenever her gaze landed on Hermione.

"LOVE your name! I need another kid, a girl, so I can name her that. Hey Sevvy, you be the Godfather!"

Snape groaned, "Again?"

Lucy laughed and said, "Every time I have another fictional kid I make Sev the Godfather."

Hermione said, "No wonder he groaned."

"Oh, he loves it!" She turned to Ron, "We got her last name, what's yours, Kid?"

"Weasley." he answered.

"LOVE it!"

Jena chuckled, "Luce, you love everything."

"What can I say," the blonde stated, "I'm a lovable type of gal."

Harry was practically hidden behind Ron, which wasn't that hard, considering how small he was. The woman's exuberance was intimidating. "And we seem to have a hidden child behind Big Red!" Lucy exclaimed. Snape looked at Harry, confused, as the teen seemed to want to melt down into the cracks in the floor rather than have any attention on him at all. Harry, for his part, had just learned that introductions were always awkward when it came to the Boy-Who-Lived. He gave a quiet wave, wondering how much caffeine these people had indulged in, and stayed behind Ron.

Lucy would have none of that though; reaching around Ron, she grabbed Harry's arm and pulled him from his hiding spot. "Hey, Cutie, what's your name?"

"Wow, Sev, you got some good looking students. Wish I was 17 again." Jena mused, eyeing Harry. "Gorgeous green eyes, right Luce?"

"Absolutely!" She reached forward to swipe Harry's hair from his eyes but caught sight of his scar. "Merlin…"

A bit panicked by the change in attitude (not that he didn't expect it), Harry lurched from her grasp and backed away right into Snape. Blushing, he shifted to the side looked up at the witches, ready to take on any comment. Noticing his discomfort, Lucy smiled and used her usual ally in awkward situations: she made a joke at another person's expense. "No wonder Sevvy came in here looking like something crawled up his ass and died! It's Harry Potter!"

"Really?!" Baylor yelled, excited. He jumped up and all his 6'5 build scrambled to get a sight of Harry's scar. "Oh, this is perfect!"

Jena pounced, pulling him from the safety of his best friend's shadow, "Fantastic! We have a new way to annoy Sev!" Harry's eyes went wide, surely, if she had her way, Gryffindor would cease to have any points left!

"All right, ENOUGH!" Snape barked. "I'm hungry, I'm sure the brats are hungry, I KNOW Baylor is hungry, so can we eat?" Harry looked up at his professor appreciatively.

Lucy smiled at Harry and Jena, "We have plotting to do now, Sev. Go cook with the men."

"No. Harry is not here to entertain you."

Harry gasped, "You just called me Harry!" Both Ron and Hermione were just as shocked; they looked up at their professor, mouths practically on the floor.

"Ain't that your name, kid?" Georgie asked, looking back and forth between Snape and Harry.

"Well, yeah…"

"So what's he call you then?"

"I refer to him by his surname as I do all my students. Except this is summer; I'm no one's professor right now." Snape mouthed. "Food. NOW."

The elder witches and wizards took this as meaning the issue was dropped. Severus never became snippy with them so when he did they knew to oblige. "All right, all right, someone needs a nap!" Baylor quipped as he walked into the kitchen and out of the back door.

"You do not mind that they stay, Georgie?" Snape asked, glaring after Baylor - though his eyes held his amusement.

"Not at all! Could use a little excitement around here!" Georgie answered Snape. "We're having a bit of a barbeque." He said to the students. "I'll make sure Sevvy doesn't poison your food."

"How accommodating," Snape growled, rolling his eyes in the same manner he yelled at his students for. This also, did not go unnoticed by Hermione.

Lucy winked at the three students as she sauntered from the room, followed by a giggling and conspiring Jena.

"Come on, you old bat!" Georgie joked, half-hugging Snape as he laughed and led him out. That left the three teens standing in the center of the room, Ron's ears still slightly pink.

"Did he just call Snape a bat?"

"Did Snape actually laugh?"

"Am I the only one who noticed they call him Sevvy?"

Ron gaped at Harry, "Bloody hell, they do!"

"This is like The Twilight Zone via Hogwarts." Hermione quipped and rolled her eyes at the confused looks on the two boys, "Old muggle show on the telly. Even you didn't know that, Harry?"

"I never really got the chance to watch much television, 'Mione."

She just shrugged, "My curiosity is peaked. Let's outside and see what else we can find out about the old bat."

Dinner was steaks, chicken and burgers grilled on the barbeque with corn (also grilled) and salad. The adults drank beer and the kids, soda. They were seated at a picnic table perched on a cement patio. The grill sizzled with warming food, and the conversation was light. Halfway through the meal, Harry noticed that the pile of beer bottles in front of Snape was growing. He eyed Hermione and grinned. Perfect.

"Professor Snape?" She spoke up, her Gryffindor bravery only rivaled by her young curiosity.

Snape raised an eyebrow, "Yes?"

The giggling from the other adults drew his attention from her though as they mocked him. "Professor Snape!" "Yo Proff!" and "Snapers!" were just some of the taunts being thrown at him. Ron and Harry held in snickers.

Georgie leaned forward, "Call the old bat Sev or Sevvy. I can't bear to hear him called Professor; I just start laughing too hard."

Hermione sputtered, "I…I can't! He's my professor!" The thought of this made her pale; you just never disrespected the institution of learning by referring to a professor by their first name!

"It's either that or sir." Harry spoke up, shrugging, his mouth still twitching with a hidden grin.

"Oh, hell no!" Lucy yelled, "That is no 'sir'! That's Sevvy!" She pointed at Snape and nodded, "Sevvy. Not sir. Sevvy."

"Excuse me, I hate to interrupt this lovely conversation pertaining to my name, but having my students call me Sevvy is none too appealing." Snape spoke, his annoyance showing.

"Then call him Severus." Baylor said, "At least it's not Sevvy?" He added when Snape glared at him.

Hermione decided quietly to just not address him by ANY name at all for the moment, "My question…if you will?" Her hands in her lap, she tried to convey sheer politeness and respect: an obvious ploy to deter Snape from thinking she was going to pry for information.

"Yes? I apologize for the interruption."

She shrugged, "I was just wondering why it is that at school you stalk around the hallways with your hair down in your robes and never smile, and are a greasy git?" An innocent smile to top it off, Hermione waited for an answer. Fred and George would be proud.

Ron spurted his drink half way across the table - to the great amusement of Lucy and Baylor. Snape's mouth dropped.

Georgie and Jena were speaking quietly, Cheshire grins on their faces. They looked up at Snape. "Gonna answer the young lady?" Jena grinned.

It was Snape's turn to sputter. He was never caught off guard quite like this before. And the self satisfied smirk on Hermione's face didn't help matters.

It was then that Snape noticed the five beer bottles in front of him and Harry and Ron's smirks as they looked from them to their professor. Oh.

"How positively Slytherin of you, Ms. Granger." He finally managed. Just to be spiteful, Snape grabbed another beer from the cooler, twisted off the top and took a long gulp. The self-satisfied smirk didn't leave his student's face though as she waited patiently for an answer. "You're not getting a response. Give it up." he snapped when Hermione refused to remove her attention.

"Oh, yes she is!" Georgie answered, "If you really do act like a mean old bat at Hogwarts, she deserves an answer."

"That is decidedly not the best solution to this Georgie!"

"Sure it is! You tell them, or I will. Or Lucy, Or Baylor. Or Jen--"

"All right, I get it!"

"Then answer the young lady."

Snape grunted, "She's top witch in grades and her best friend is Harry Bloody Potter. She can figure it out. She's smart."

"Does this have anything to do with the Order--" But Hermione's hand snapped over Ron's mouth with a loud "Shhh!!"

Snape, again, rolled his eyes. "They know. They are actually part of our confidants in the U.S., The Dark Lord has affected here as well, or did you think he only had eyes for Europe?"

"Why have we never heard of them?" Ron asked.

Snape only shrugged, "Upon the Headmaster's orders you are only to be told what is deemed important enough to be discussed with you."

"Great bloody strategy!" Harry growled, "That how Sirius was killed! Because no one saw it fit to tell me anything!" He didn't quite know why, but hearing that Dumbledore had once again kept things from him angered Harry to no end.

"Potter--"

"No! I don't want to hear it!" The anger on Harry's face was evident, the boy looked as though he was about to pop a hernia.

The other adults sat quietly, shocked at the outburst of the formally perceived 'quiet one.' Snape sighed in annoyance, "I admit things weren't done quite so…well…pertaining to your Godfather, but that is no reason to snap at me or at anyone else. Headmaster's orders, Potter, or has your simpleton mind been unable to grasp such an obvious point? ASIDE from the fact that your mutt of a Godfather should have KNOWN to keep his troublesome arse at headquarters! And if you had ever TRIED – ATTEMPTED - to learn Occulemcy, I dare say you have to be the most thickheaded, idiotic--"

"That's enough, Severus!" Georgie stood and grabbed his arm. "I'm shocked that you would...I have NEVER…I…This is a side of you I do not like Severus Snape. At ALL."

Instantly, Snape looked ashamed as he glanced from one friend to the others. It was yet another shock to the system for the students, though Harry barely registered it; he was too busy holding back tears at the thought of his Godfather. "Harry…" Snape began, in a kinder tone.

"Piss off!" Harry snapped, jumping up the table and taking off into the wide range of Georgie's property.

"Oh, nice, Sev, real nice!" Jena snapped.

"Real fucking smart, Severus, good job." Lucy pushed herself up. "Jena, let's go find him and allow Georgie to chew the asshole out."

"No, I'll speak with him." Snape said, standing himself.

"Absolutely not! No way! Because you did such a FINE job of it before?!" Jena hissed; it wasn't a wonder to her why Snape never had any kids, really.

"Then let me," Snape said through gritted teeth, "correct it."

Ron and Hermione were both quiet through this exchange, both knowing Harry well enough to understand that if he wanted to talk, he would not have left the table. They eyed the adults warily.

"I will." Georgie glared. "And I've said it before Sevvy, that Headmaster of yours may be brilliant in terms of magic and studies, but he's a sure fire idiot when it comes to social concepts." Without waiting for an answer, Georgie stalked away in the direction Harry had gone.

Snape was left sitting at the table, looking like a naughty toddler.


	2. Some Truths, Some Cuddles

**Title: **Impalpable

**Author: **Ria Rose

**Summary:**A summer road trip through Muggle America turns ill when the car fthat Ron, Hermione, and Harry have purchased breaks down. Walking to the nearest gas station, Harry encounters the last person he thought he ever wanted to see…and his 87 Camaro. But there's a side to Severus Snape that no one knows about: a free riding rebel that would rather don older rock tees than robes and still breaks rules wherever he can. Little do they know it, but the Golden Trio is in for one hell of a summer. - Summer after sixth Year - Non-HBP and DH compliant.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own ANYTHING identifiable to the Harry Potter world. J.K. Rowling gets that privilege. Anything you don't recognize, that shits all mine. And I will open up a heaping can of whoop-ass on anyone that tries to steal my shit. Thank you, come again!

**Just as a side note, so you all know, this story is also archives at the (Wonderful!) PotionsandSnitches[dot]net. I have several chapters written. I'm trying for a light and fluffy story with some drama to keep things interesting.**

**By the way**: I was a little shit and made this **contemporary**. Meaning, I moved this up about ten years to make life easy concerning what Harry listens to. Don't like, don't read. **Nah nah nah nah nahhhhh nah!**

**Chapter Two: Some Truths, Some Cuddles, and a Breakfast Thingy**

Harry didn't know where he was headed, but anywhere had to be better than staying on the patio and dealing with Snape. How stupid was he to think that Snape was in any way different then how he behaved at Hogwarts? Sure, he was different in how he looked and how he acted with his friends but with Harry it was all just the same.

Severus Snape loathed Harry Potter and nothing would change that.

And to add to it, the memory of his Godfather's death that he had repressed for the entirety of sixth year – and subsequently never properly dealt with – was now on the forefront of his mind. A horrible taunting of the moment of death played over and over as if he had only one setting.

Moreover, of course, Snape was right, - he was always right! - this was Sirius and Harry's fault alone. Sirius had been reckless and Harry irresponsible.

Down a small slope, Harry happened upon a hammock tied between two trees. Bitterly, he lay on it, stretching width wise with his feet planted on the ground. Squeezing his eyes shut, he attempted to quell his tears.

This was so wrong! He shouldn't be here! He should be with his best friends, cruising down highways and eating cheap dinners at Denny's. Lying in a hammock at a house belonging to a friend of Snape's and trying not to cry was not on his schedule of things to do that summer.

Adjusting his body so he was half lying on his side, Harry furiously wiped a few escaped tears.

"Hey."

Snapping up into a sitting position, Harry eyed Georgie as the man took a seat in the grass in front of him.

"Hi," the teen said quietly.

"This is one of my favorite spots out here. I put this hammock up right when I moved in, 'bout 12 years ago I think."

"It's nice." Harry said quietly, wiping away the evidence of tears.

Georgie grinned and pulled out a handkerchief, "Here, better than a sleeve."

A small smile in thanks, Harry wiped his eyes. In the corner of the handkerchief was an emblem embroidered in black and orange. "What is that?" he asked.

"Harley Davidson." Georgie grinned, "Motorcycles. Only ones I ride. Took me years to get the perfect one, working crap Muggle jobs and saving money, had some beat up one for the longest time. Now though, now I got myself a beauty. Severus built his from the ground up. Better with his hands than he is with his mouth, I'd say."

Harry nodded, "Yeah, well, that goes without saying..."

"Listen, Kid, I ain't ever seen Sev act like that before. He's complained, of course, about 'Harry Bloody Potter,' but he never - I mean never! – ever spoke so ill of you. He's spat about your insane adventures, your 'saving people' issue, and how you've got more brains than you know what to do with but you don't apply yourself, he's bitched and moaned like a pissed off teenager, but he's never spoken like that. I don't know why…I've never seen him so…spiteful before."

"You obviously know a different Snape than I do."

"That so?" Georgie said, "How is he at Hogwarts?"

"A greasy git. Unfair, mean, cruel…he's such an arsehole! I'm sorry, I know that he is a good friend of yours, but all he does at school is take points from houses other than his own and yell and scream at everyone not in Slytherin. I hate him! He hates me because of my FATHER. Not me, my dad! I never even KNEW my dad! He's a condescending, greasy prat!"

"Oh, no, Harry, tell me how you really feel?"

The tension lifted and Harry laughed softly, "And here I was thinking that this was going to be different: the jeans and the car, and you telling me that he has a motorcycle, and the beer and the hair and not being greasy but actually clean…But of course I was wrong. I'm always wrong."

"For one thing, Harry, the greasiness is a serum used to protect his hair and skin from the potions; otherwise he'd be bald and blotchy by now. There IS, however, a newer version that doesn't leave the wearer greasy looking, but Sevvy isn't all that fond of change. Second, well, he told me about your father and his friends. And it does bother me, what Sev went through. But they were also young and immature. And the same goes for Sev, he was young and immature. And in a way he should just get the hell over it."

Harry snorted, "He doesn't let go of things easily."

"No, you're right, he doesn't. But he's been through a lot Harry. A lot of betrayal and a lot of hurt. Though him ever admitting that he's really just a damaged young man will never happen." Pausing, Georgie gathered his thoughts. "Do you know why Severus joined the Death Eaters?" At seeing Harry shake his head, the older man continued. "Acceptance, Harry, just like any teenager wants. He wanted to belong. He was an outcast for so long that the idea of belonging to something was wonderful. And once that idea was set in his mind it was easy to make himself think he truly believed in what You-Know-Who was doing. Did you know, Harry, did you know that his best friend, his first friend, was your mother?"

Harry's mouth dropped, "What?"

Georgie nodded, "He never really believed in that pureblood shit. No, Lily was far too special to him. How could someone so sweet, wonderful, and smart be in the wrong? So what if she was Muggleborn?" Leaning forward, Georgie spoke firmly, "Severus Snape is a good man, Harry. But I will not, in any way, condone the behavior that he displayed before. But there are things that you need to know about him. Severus is scared of people knowing these. But you deserve to know, if anyone does, it's you. If Sev really does treat you badly at school, than you deserve to know why."

"But this has nothing to do with The Order or Voldemort."

Georgie choked, "Sorry, not used to hearing that name said so…plainly."

"Professor Dumbledore says that fearing a name inspires fear itself."

"And he's right, but it's still creepy. Listen, Harry, Sev needs to act like he does over the pond because he's a double agent. You know that, right?" Harry nodded, "And in being a spy he needs to keep up appearances. What you see at Hogwarts is not the real Sevvy. Though, he's not really helping that right now, with acting like he was at dinner.

"He doesn't hate you Harry. He becomes annoyed with you, but I think that is because he forgot what it's like to be a teenager."

"What's he really like?" Harry asked.

"Fun. Lots of fun. Sarcastic, badass, rule breaking, brilliant – he's a character all right."

"How did you meet him?"

"After your mother and father were murdered reality and common sense snapped him back into the Light, he fled to America for a taste of freedom. He spent a few months in Azkaban and your Headmaster vouched for him and had him released. Anyway, he was rundown, hungry and sick and stumbled into a bar I used to work at. I fed him, gave him a place to stay and the rest, they say, is history."

"Why can he act differently here if Voldemort affects America as well?"

"Because Severus isn't as known here. Or he wasn't. It's complicated, but he, more or less, doesn't give a rat's ass. No one knows that there's a leg of The Order here and You-Know-Who is flaming idiot in not monitoring the Americas. He's so content on Eurasia that we slip right through the cracks. There have been attacks and deaths, but only because he thinks that one attack will suppress us."

Harry was flabbergasted, "But that's ridiculous!"

"I know it is, and Sevvy knows it is, but You-Know-Who doesn't. He's cocky, Harry. He thinks his shit don't stink."

"And Snape takes that to his advantage?"

"Exactly."

"But why did he…before...?"

"I don't know. Severus Snape is a complicated man."

"I'll take that as a compliment, Georgie." Harry and Georgie looked up, striding up to them, his hands deep in his pockets, was Snape.

"You better be here to apologize, Sev."

Snape nodded, "May I speak with Potter alone?"

"His name is Harry, and yes you may. And if I see one tear fall from his eyes, I'll break your fucking legs. Got it?"

"I wouldn't put it past you."

Georgie nodded, "You better tell him everything." He stood and walked away. Hugging himself, Harry stared down at the grass. "Potter," Snape sighed, "Harry, I…I'm sorry. I over reacted before."

"The only reason you're saying that is because your friends are mad at you."

"Partially, yes, that holds some reason as to why I sought to find you. But the other, bigger part is that I am…sorry." Snape sat down in the exact spot Georgie was seated in before. Pulling up some of the grass, he ripped it into pieces.

"Wow, Severus Snape actually apologizing. We need to record this great moment in history."

Snape winced, "You have a sharp tongue, Mr. Potter, I never realized."

"You can't take points in the summer."

Agreeing, Snape said, "Come, walk with me."

Harry didn't see any other option than to join Snape as he stood. With a beckon of the head, the teen stepped to his side and they began their way further down the slope and to the banks of a stream.

There was a pregnant pause as they walked, each contemplating the other, trying to figure motives and sincerity. Harry quietly kicked at the smooth stones at the base of the water. He was the first to speak up.

"You know, I'm well aware that it was my fault. I just don't need you of all people to shove it in my face."

"It wasn't your fault, not entirely anyway. There are many faults that are not accounted for in that…fiasco."

"No, it's my fault. And why would you even say that, now, after you blamed me before?"

Snape took his time in answering. "I was angry and I was wrong to be so. Minerva constantly badgers with me with a truth that no one should ignore, though many have. You are 16, Mr. Potter. You are not 20, 30, 40, 50, or otherwise. It is wrong for any of us to assume that you know exactly what to do. But we have assumed that. To dire consequences."

"I'm not a baby, I'm almost bloody 17." Harry said with a glare.

"No, you are not a baby. Though, you tend to act like a toddler at times."

"Oh," Harry began, his voice filled with sarcasm, "an insult, and here I was thinking that you were actually going to stop being a prat."

Snape waved his hand in circles, "Old habits, you know."

"I'm not arrogant, either. Nor spoiled or coddled or favored, or whatever it is that you think of me."

"I have never seen anything to the contrary, Mr. Potter. As they say, perception is often the reality."

Harry grunted, "You only see what you want to see, and you know it!"

"Then show me otherwise!"

"I thought you came down here to apologize, not to bloody antagonize me!"

Snape wheeled and faced him, "I have had enough of your language, Potter!"

"Why? Your friends curse enough for the two of us!"

"My friends have nothing to do with this, you insolent brat!"

"You judged me before you even knew me and you expect me to, what? To bow to your will? To be a quiet and weak little boy who will just take your insults? No! I won't! This is me! I'm not bloody Harry Potter! I'm Harry! Just Harry!"

"You are impossible! That's what you are!"

"DAMN RIGHT!" Harry yelled. His hands were on his hips and his face turned up towards Snape's in defiance.

Snape visibly relaxed, in a quieter voice he said, "Well, at least we agree on something."

"I want to know why. I want to know why you insist on treating me the way you do. And don't give me that spy crap. Or the excuse that you think I'm arrogant. Tell me the truth."

"Allow me to keep some secrets, Potter. I'm more than slightly aware that Georgie divulged quite a bit to you."

"Actually, he really didn't."

"He will, in which case I must ask of you to let me bask in secrecy a while longer. Georgie has a big mouth and a lot of notions as to what should be known and who should know it."

Harry looked up at his professor, once again noting that he was no closer to understanding the man than he was before. Georgie was more than just a little correct in saying that Snape was a complicated man. At least, for the moment, Harry and he had reached a truce.

&&&

When their walking brought them back up to the patio, they noticed that the others had pulled their chairs around a fire. Hermione, Ron and Jena were roasting marshmallows and Baylor and Lucy were eating theirs. Georgie nursed a beer and gave both Harry and Snape a quizzical look when they walked up. The sun had all but set in the sky, leaving the bright fire as their only light aside from the sliver of red seeping behind the Catskills.

Leaning back, Baylor grabbed a chair and plopped it next to him, "Here you go, Harry, prime spot between Ron and me!" Harry smiled and took his seat. He accepted a clean stick from Lucy and the bag of marshmallows from Ron. Snape watched the scene with an inward groan. His friends had taken the teen under their wings and would do anything to make sure that he was all right, even if that meant alienating one of their best friends.

Retrieving a chair for himself, Snape sat down in between Hermione and Georgie. He did not move to take a marshmallow or one of the sticks Georgie kept for such roasting, but instead grabbed another Bud from the cooler. Whatever conversation had been held before he and Harry joined was dropped.

Later, before the three teens could fall asleep in their chairs, Georgie ushered them inside and up the stairs to his guest room. Two full beds dressed in navy blue sat waiting for the tired teens. Ron and Harry slid into the one closest to the door and Hermione took the other. Snape had retrieved their pillows and bags from his car, and though the students took their pillows, they were too tired to change into pajamas. The light clicked off and they were left to sleep.

&&&

When morning came, Hermione was, predictably, the first one awake. She giggled and wished for a camera when she spied her two friends practically cuddling on the other bed. She never took either one to be a cuddlier, but obviously, she was wrong. Ron, being bigger, had one arm over Harry and his chin resting on his head. Harry, for his part, was curled up and seemed to snuggle against Ron's chest.

Oh, this was brilliant! They would be mortified when they awoke.

Making her bed quickly and grabbing her bath supplies from her duffle, Hermione gave her friends one last grin before setting off down the hallway to find a bathroom.

After showering, brushing her teeth, and dressing in blue jeans and a red tank, Hermione made her way barefoot down the steps, tying her hair back as she went. She headed in the direction of the kitchen, taking note of the modest home and its décor. Georgie seemed to favor simplicity in his black leather couches and modest end and coffee tables. Motorcycle memorabilia was scattered throughout, miniature models, autographed helmets, and even Harley Davidson mugs adorned the shelves. Peering closer to a shelf she was passing, Hermione grinned. Mixed photographs, both Muggle and Wizard, were framed and lining the shelves. Several held a smiling Snape. One showed him young, very young, but grinning on top of a motorcycle, the bike so big it looked as though it could overtake the future Potions Master. Another held a slightly older Snape standing behind a grill at a beach, in one hand was a spatula and in the other a beer. An attractive woman with long black hair had her arms around his waist, one hand, which the camera didn't catch, was suspiciously low on his abdomen.

The teen raised her eyebrows. Snape in a romantic relationship just didn't seem normal!

Sometime that morning, Georgie must have turned the Air Conditioning off. The sliding glass doors to the patio were open and through the screened storm door, voices floated through and reached Hermione's ears.

"It's 4th of July weekend, Sev, nothing is open except for liquor stores and Wal-Mart! And anyway, where are they gonna go? You said it yourself: the car is done. They may as well stay here and come Monday we'll figure things out." Straining her ears, Hermione sought to figure whom the voice belonged to. It was male, so either Baylor or Georgie, but she wasn't familiar enough with them yet to be able to tell their voices apart without seeing them.

"This was supposed to be an adult weekend…" Snape said.

"So, what?" One of the women was speaking, "I'll just go pick up Marissa and Andy and Baylor can get Gina and Michelle, and we'll call the others and tell them to bring the kids. I didn't wanna leave my babies with the in-laws for the 4th anyway."

"No, this has been planned for weeks. I will take my students and we'll, I don't know, I'll figure something."

"Severus, honestly, just because you're British doesn't mean we don't want you here for Independence Day! Hell, we need a Brit so we can shove America's victory in their face!"

"That was charming, Lucy. Oh, how I do enjoy my time spent in the colonies."

Laughter erupted as a few playful insults were tossed between the friends. When quiet once more, Hermione heard Snape speak again, his voice so soft she could barely hear him. "You don't mind, any of you?"

"Not at all." Said a voice Hermione now knew as Lucy's.

The other female voice, Jena's, she deducted, said, "They're good kids, Sev, I like them."

"You bloody would! If you were from the UK and attended Hogwarts, no doubt you'd be Gryffindor!"

Jena laughed, "Oh, you poor Slytherin, surrounded by nasty Gryffindors! Whatever shall a snake like you do?"

"Maybe he should have been in Gryffindor!"

"Bite your tongue, Georgie!" Snape admonished at the older wizard's words.

"Don't get me started, Sevvy," Georgie continued, "If you were in Gryffindor then you would have unabashed bravery and then you could call Lizzie Grace up and tell her that you damn well love her!"

There was silence for a few moments and Hermione found herself wondering if that was the name of the woman in the photograph.

"That was low, Georgie."

"It's true. You let go of a good woman, Sev. No doubt about that. I don't care if you're thinking that it was mutual. You're the man and you're the one who should have gone after her! Chivalry should not be dead! So what if you took a position teaching at Hogwarts, you could have made it work!"

A chair scrapped the patio as someone stood. "She didn't want to leave America and I needed that job! I still do! Long distance relationships never work! We tried and we failed. 2 years of only seeing her on the weekends or in the summers, it was killing us!"

"That's bullshit, and you know it's bullshit! You're in love with her, Severus Snape, and she's in love with you!"

"This conversation is over!"

"Or, is it that you still feel guilty over Lily Potter!" a new voice chimed in.

Hermione gasped, her hand shooting up to cover her mouth, what, in the name of Merlin, did Harry's mother have to do with this?

"I would strongly advise you, Baylor McKean, to drop that line of thought NOW."

But it seemed Baylor didn't take to advice well, "It's true then, you feel guilty for falling in love with Lizzie when you reserved your-"

"ENOUGH!"

Feeling a larger argument, Hermione made her presence known in hopes that the topic would be dropped. She walked further down the hallway, "Professor Snape?"

"I'm on the patio, Ms. Granger, with a couple of meddlers."

Reaching the door, Hermione slid the screen open and stepped outside into the comfortable heat. The temperature had dropped from the upper 90's the day before to about 80 degrees Fahrenheit.

Snape was standing at the edge of the patio, fuming, and the familiar scowl Hermione was so used to in potions class was laid across his face. He cooled his features, "Are you hungry, Hermione?" She nodded in affirmation. "We were thinking of getting breakfast at the diner up the road. Are the other two awake?"

"Not yet," she answered, "They're still asleep, and dare I say, cuddling."

Lucy squealed, "Oh! I wanna see!" She and Jena bolted from the chairs and ran inside, leaving a trail of laughter behind them.

&&&

Harry awoke feeling very comfortable and safe. Someone was holding him and their scent was familiar. He smiled; his eyes still closed, he snuggled closer to the warm body. A giggle above him retrieved him from his comfort and his eyes snapped over. Even without his glasses, the mess of red hair could only be one person.

"Bloody hell!" Lurching from Ron's arms, Harry jumped out of bed, tripped over the blankets, and fell, hard, onto his bottom. The giggling only became louder and he fumbled for his glasses and slipped them on. Jena and Lucy were in the doorway, bouncing with excitement.

"Oh!" Jena cooed, "You two are so cute!"

"Oi!" Harry cursed again at Ron's still sleeping form. "Get up! Up you idiot!" he said, hitting Ron's shoulder. "Stop laughing, you two! It's not that funny!"

"Aw, I love best friends, they're adorable."

"You know, they say male best friends usually end up discovering that they are gay and fall in love with each other."

"Oh, I've heard that, Luce. It's so cute, it really is!"

"Stop!" Harry began to whine, "Please, I'm not bent, and neither is Ron! We just…It was cold or…something."

Lucy grinned, "Sure it was, hon." She winked, "Get showered and dressed, Hermione is already up and about, we're gonna go to the diner for breakfast. Get Big Red up too."

"Easier said than done." Harry mumbled. With a sigh, he began, once again, to try to rouse Ron.

When they were both showered and dressed in jeans and t-shirts, the adults rounded everyone up. It was decided that Baylor and Georgie would ride in Lucy's 1966 Mustang with Jena and the kids would ride in Snape's Camaro, as the professor didn't trust Lucy's driving with his students.

When this was voiced, Ron gawked. "Are you serious? You don't trust HER driving? With the way you nearly killed us yesterday?!"

Snape only gave him a tainted smile, "Which only explains how much worse she is."

"Didn't think of that."

"No, I expect you didn't. Seatbelts!"

Not only did Ron buckled his seatbelt, but he grabbed onto the 'oh shit' bar and hung on for dear life.

&&&

Dappin Diner was located in between O'Leary's Pub and Mitch's Bar; both having cars and bikes parked outside at 10:30 in the morning. Lucy, taking out her pink lipstick, smeared on a long line down the seat of one of the bike's parked outside O'Leary's.

"It's Bryon; he'll know it was me." She gave the bike a quick pat and headed into the diner.

"Blasphemy," Snape muttered at the defiled bike as he ushered the teens inside.

A short, plump woman with teased blonde hair and blue eye shadow was waiting to seat them. She had a pen behind her ear, a stained apron, and an old blue waitress' uniform. "Georgie boy!" She called out to the older wizard. He hugged her and grinned as she led them to his favorite booth in the back. Snape immediately started flipping through the jukebox.

Harry studied the menu in front of him, not sure what he was in the mood for. Snape leaned over to look at Harry's menu, "Dappin's Hungry Helping Breakfast is a good choice if you don't know what you want." He said, and punched in the tabs to play a song.

"That looks like so much food, though!"

"You can wrap the leftovers." Sliding in four more quarters, Snape left the music choice up to Lucy, who began punching in the numbers to her favorite songs.

"What else is good?"

Snape pondered for a minute. "The Farmer's Omelet is really good, but it doesn't come with cheese. You have to order that with it. Get provolone and Swiss if you do. Orange juice is fresh here and the meal comes with home fries and toast."

"Home fries?" Harry looked up at his professor in confusion.

"Fried potatoes with onions and maple syrup."

"Mm…That sounds good. I think I'll go for that."

"Orange juice?" The waitress asked. Harry had not even noticed her approach the table. He nodded.

She turned to Ron. "The Dappin breakfast thingy."

Laughing, the waitress wrote on her notepad, "To drink?"

"Chocolate milk!"

Snape rolled his eyes at the redhead and ordered a Farmer's Omelet for himself as well with orange juice and black coffee.

"I'm glad you two are getting along." Baylor said when the food came, "I thought Georgie was going to kill you, Sev."

Snape just shrugged and sipped his coffee. Truthfully, he was completely confused by how Harry was acting. This wasn't the coddled, arrogant brat he was used to. If anything, aside from his outburst the day before, the Gryffindor was polite and respectful, even a twinge bit shy.

Ron, however, was a Weasley through and through, and though he wasn't as much of a nuisance as the twins, he was still without the brains to think before he spoke and he still was grating on Snape's nerves. The kid was chatting up Jena like he'd known her all his life. Of course, Jena often had that effect on people; it didn't mean Ron had to speak so loudly. He was, however, not monopolizing the conversation. Jena was doing that.

Shifting his thoughts, Snape contemplated Hermione. She was polite and Georgie seemed taken with her know-it-all knowledge. 'He always did like people who were too smart for their own good,' mused Snape. But the witch hardly seemed as outspoken as she usually seemed to be in class.

Perhaps he had been wrong to judge them as he had done so?

"So," Jena said with a wink, "you and Harry were comfy last night?"

"What do you mean?" Ron asked. Harry choked on a forkful of eggs, which only lead to Hermione and the two older witches to laugh loudly.

"Shut it!" Harry scolded, "Please!"

"Wait, what happened?"

Harry's face went red, "Nothing Ron! Nothing happened! Shut up and eat!"

The laughter from the girls had several people at other tables turning to stare at the group.

&&&

It was just after two when Harry began to feel ill. Baylor was grilling up leftover burgers and hotdogs on the grill for lunch and Harry had to wander inside the house as the smell was making him feel worse. He made his way up to the guest room and lay down on the bed, holding his stomach. Within a few minutes, Ron and Hermione were entering the room, their faces concerned.

"Harry?" Hermione asked, an entire question formed in that one word.

Harry sighed, "My stomach, I don't know why, I never get sick. I feel like I'm going to puke."

Ron sat on the bed and said, "Do you want me to get Snape or someone?"

Harry shook his head and curled tighter.

Hermione placed her hand on his forehead, "You feel a little warm and maybe you should say something to Snape. He could help; he probably has a potion for your stomach."

"I'll be fine," he said, more than a little used to dealing with these types of things on his own.

"Harry," Hermione began, but was interrupted by a knock on the door. They didn't have to convince Harry to tell Snape after all, their professor stood in the doorway, his eyebrows raised in a silent question. "He doesn't feel well," Hermione told him. The potions master nodded and walked into the room.

"What's bothering you, Harry?" Snape's voice was surprisingly soft.

"My stomach," the teen replied quietly.

"I think he has a fever as well." Hermione said.

Ron moved to the end of the bed so Snape could look over Harry properly. He pulled out his wand and did a quick scan. "It looks like breakfast isn't sitting too well in you."

"'M'not used to greasy food I guess."

"No, most likely not. Hogwarts food is almost ridiculously healthy. How do you eat in the summers?"

Harry just shrugged, not really wanting to answer that. He shot a look at Hermione, who had opened her mouth to answer. She glared and said, "Honestly, Harry!"

Snape looked at the young witch, "Something you would like to share, Ms. Granger?"

"Yes, there is. But Harry…"

"…Thinks you should be quiet!" Harry finished for her.

"Oh, sure, Harry. I won't mention that the Dursleys practically starve you and Ron and I send you food so you won't die of malnutrition over the hols."

"Hermione! That's private!" Harry yelled, but the extra exertion only made him tense his stomach and he groaned and tightened his arms around himself.

Snape looked livid. "Weasley, Ms. Granger, out. Now." The softness was gone from his voice. The two teens shot Harry an apologizing look and vacated the room.

With a flick of his wand, Snape closed the door. "Harry, you will tell me exactly what she means. And it will be the truth or so help me, I may not be able to control my temper."

"What truth, Snape? The one where my relatives hate and starve me or the one where you believe I'm a pampered prince?"

"Watch your sharp tongue, Potter, do not test me!"

Harry swallowed and looked away. The last person he wanted to know his secrets was Snape, but the professor would not have silence, Harry felt his hand touch his chin and gently turn his head to face him again.

In the same soft voice he had used before, Snape said, "Already, you have altered my theories on you, Potter. Please, tell me the truth." A knot had formed inside the man's stomach. There was a thought, one he had pushed away ever since he met the Boy-Who-Lived, that had ate at his mind during the nights when school started its session after the holidays. He had seen how thin the boy looked as he walked into the Great Hall for the feast; he had seen how he devoured everything in sight as if he had not eaten since the farewell feast the semester before. But the thoughts that Harry was anything less than spoiled rotten while with his relatives were hard to vanquish. They made it easier for the potions professor to dislike the boy.

"Please, sir, don't make me tell."

"Your reluctance is as good as a confession, Harry." Snape said sadly. "What else do they do to you? Aside from neglect you?"

"Please…" Harry's eyes were welling up ever so slightly. He hastily wiped away his tears, frustrated with himself for becoming so upset.

Snape nodded, as if this act was also a confession to him. He transfigured Harry's clothes into pajamas and helped him under the covers. "Rest for a bit, we'll see if your stomachache dissipates with a nap, if not, I'll see if I can find a potion to help you. And, for the rest of your time with me, I'll be monitoring your food intake to make sure you eat nothing that will upset your stomach even more.

Harry answered quietly, "Yes, sir."

"Try and sleep, Potter. For once, do as you're told." The young wizard was about to retort sarcastically when he noticed the mirth in Snape's eyes. His professor was only kidding with him.

"I'll try my hardest," Harry said with a grin.

Snape gifted him with the briefest of smiles before he stood and left the room, closing the door sympathetically behind him.


	3. Accidently on Purpose

**Title: **Impalpable

**Author: **Ria Rose

**Summary:**A summer road trip through Muggle America turns ill when the car that Ron, Hermione, and Harry have purchased breaks down. Walking to the nearest gas station, Harry encounters the last person he thought he ever wanted to see…and his 87 Camaro. But there's a side to Severus Snape that no one knows about: a free riding rebel that would rather don older rock tees than robes and still breaks rules wherever he can. Little do they know it, but the Golden Trio is in for one hell of a summer. - Summer after sixth Year - Non-HBP and DH compliant.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own ANYTHING identifiable to the Harry Potter world. J.K. Rowling gets that privilege. Anything you don't recognize, that shits all mine. And I will open up a heaping can of whoop-ass on anyone that tries to steal my shit. Thank you, come again!

**Just as a side note, so you all know, this story is also archives at the (Wonderful!) PotionsandSnitches[dot]net. I have several chapters written. I'm trying for a light and fluffy story with some drama to keep things interesting.**

**By the way**: I was a little shit and made this **contemporary**. Meaning, I moved this up about ten years to make life easy concerning what Harry listens to. Don't like, don't read. **Nah nah nah nah nahhhhh nah!**

**Chapter Three: Accidently on Purpose**

"Hey, Sev?" Lucy asked; she was waiting at the bottom of the stairs for him, watching as he slowly made his way back onto the first floor. "We're gonna do a Wal-Mart run for the rest of the stuff for the fourth, you in?"

Snape shook his head, "I'll pass, Luce. Harry is sick and…" He glared at her knowing smirk. "What?!"

"Nothing!" She answered in a sing song voice. "We'll take the other two and…We'll see you two later. BYE!" With a skip, she left the house, ushering Ron and Hermione into her car. Jena sat and the front and flipped him off as they sped away, Ron hastily putting his seatbelt on as they did so.

"We're gonna go up to Bellfare and pick up some gas for the grill." Snape turned to see Georgie pocketing his wallet and Baylor digging his keys out. "You take care of that kid, got it?" Snape had a brief thought that they were all leaving on purpose.

"I know, I know, you'll break my fucking legs if I don't."

"Good boy." Georgie grinned and lead Baylor out. Snape watched them leave and thought about the teen asleep upstairs and the new revelations he learned about him. Cringing at his own stupidity for years past, Snape made his way back up the steps to check on the boy. He was asleep when he cracked open the door, curled on his side and still clutching his stomach.

Making his way into the bathroom and opening Georgie's Wizard spaced cabinet, Snape dug through his personal stores of potions. Each was labeled in his own handwriting, as Snape was solely responsible for keeping the older Wizard stocked.

Taking what he needed from the cabinet, Snape walked down the hallway and eased himself quietly into the guestroom. He placed the vials on the nightstand next to the Harry's bed and took out his wand. His slight fever had risen.

Snape frowned at this, but still did not want to wake the boy just yet. He had only just fallen asleep, but, if they were to bring his fever down, it would have to be done. He could go back to sleep as soon as he had taken his potions. Unless, of course, Severus Snape could grow balls enough to ask the boy about his life with the Dursley's.

"Potter," Snape lightly tapped the boy's shoulder. "Harry? Wake up; I need to give you some potions.

"Professor?" Harry blinked up at him and searched the nightstand for his glasses, nearly knocking over some of the vials in the process. Snape bit back a snide remark, steadied the vials, and handed Harry his glasses.

"Here, for your fever." The potion was a dark red; it looked, to Harry, almost like blood and his stomach churned at the thought.

"I thought we were going to wait until later, to see if I felt better?"

"I was going to, I only brought these out just in case, but when I took your temperature, I saw that it had risen, albeit barely a degree, it was enough to worry me."

Harry stared up at his professor. 'Did he just say that he was worried?' he thought.

Snape saw the reaction to his words written all over the boy's face and inwardly groaned. He couldn't believe that he had just admitted out loud that he was worried about the brat. "Well, you know, figuratively speaking." It was a bad cover up, but at least it was something.

Harry, though, thankfully let it slide. He sat up slowly, moving a pillow behind his back as he leaned against the headboard. Snape handed him the vial and Harry took the potion quickly, grimacing at the taste.

"This is for your stomach." The light blue potion didn't taste any better but Harry drank it anyway. He felt the contents of the vial spread down his throat and chest and warm his belly pleasantly. The sick feeling went away almost instantly.

"Thank you, sir."

Snape nodded and sat on the edge of his bed. "We need to talk about what you told me before, or rather, what was implied. But," he said when Harry moved to interrupt, "if you'd rather sleep for a bit, you may. We will be talking though." He hardened his voice enough to let his student know that he was serious.

Harry sighed. "Might as well get it over with."

"How very Gryffindor of you, Mr. Potter."

Harry shrugged, "I try."

Losing the sternness in his voice Snape said, "What did your relatives allow you to eat?"

Looking down at his hands, Harry tried to fight the urge to lie. What did it matter now? If everyone knew the truth, it would do nothing. Within just a few weeks, Harry would be 17-years-old and an adult, by Wizarding standards. He could shout the truth to the world and still his uncle could do him no harm. Not any longer, anyway. Harry had no intent of returning to Privet Drive at all this summer. On the 31st, the wards would fall and Voldemort would most likely descend upon the house in full rampage. But Harry failed to find himself caring. His aunt and uncle had been warned and they could do with that what they will.

They could no longer hurt him.

Harry could enjoy his summer with his two best friends and come autumn he could leave his innocence behind like a pair of swim trunks. He would defeat the Dark Lord – of this he was determined! – And he would most likely come to his own death as well.

At least if he told Snape the truth, the whole truth also, someone would know his story. And maybe his professor would tell others and the world would know.

And maybe then, those who were also abused would finally have a voice.

Harry raised his head slowly. He looked into Snape's eyes and spoke in a low, steady voice. "I was fed only when I completed all of my chores and that was barely ever. My uncle's list of things for me to accomplish was long and nearly impossible. But when I did finish my duties, I was allowed to eat from the leftovers of the meal I, myself, had cooked. On the occasions in which I failed to complete the multitude of chores, I was sent to my cupboard, and later my small room, without any food. My aunt, I believe, took some pity on me and would allow me buttered bread and juice. And if my uncle had left for work and there was still breakfast leftover in the mornings, I was allotted to eat my fill." He tilted his chin up, never breaking eye contact with the potions master in an effort to show him that he was strong, regardless of his past.

The effect was not lost on Snape, as he was speechless for several moments after the boy had spoken. Finally, when he had regained some sense, he said, "Why did you never tell anyone? You could have been removed from their…care…and would not have had to suffer as you did."

"You cannot be brave, Professor Snape, if you have only had good things happen to you."

"They could have killed you!"

"Obviously I had quite the will to live since I'm still alive. And anyway, I said enough without saying more than once. No one ever listened to me. I learned at a young age that to survive you can count on no one but yourself." There was defiance in the boy's eyes. He was daring Snape to combat what he had just spoken. But the older Wizard did not argue. These were truths that he knew all too well.

"Did they ever hit you?"

"Yes."

"How often?"

"Often enough." Harry answered simply.

"Potter, answer the question."

"My relatives found no trouble in locking me in a cupboard and starving me. Answer your own damn question."

The response was so unlike what Snape had expected that he found himself standing and stepping back from the bed. "They beat you?"

"No, THEY did not. My uncle, however, did."

Something flashed in Snape's eyes that Harry had so often seen in his own. It was anger unlike any other that resided only within those who had been abused such as he had been. And Harry understood.

"You were beaten also." It wasn't a question; it was statement, said like a fact in a monotone voice that held no room for confusion. Snape nodded. "Well, then you should have seen the signs, given that you knew of them all too well yourself. But as I stated before, Professor, you only see what you want to see."

"I want to see the truth."

"Then see it!"

There was a long silence that stretched between the two Wizards. At length, Snape spoke, "I will not ask for forgiveness on my past actions, but perhaps I can make it up to you?"

"I'm listening."

"If you want, the three of you may stay with me through the duration of the summer, and I promise I will make it interesting. I will not tell Professor Dumbledore where you are, as I had planned to when you would have left my care."

Harry jolted and snapped at Snape, "I thought you said you wouldn't tell!"

"I wasn't going to tell him WHERE you were EXACTLY, just that you were on a road trip and safe. Do not think news of your disappearance hadn't reached my ears. My plan was to ease everyone's worries. I don't think you three realized what you have done by just up and vanishing to America."

"Hermione's parents knew."

"Well, that's just great for HER parents, given that they are not part of our world!"

Harry fell silent, upon reflection it became shockingly clear just how rash and foolish their decision to go on the trip without telling anybody was. His voice was quiet when he again spoke, "I'm sorry. We didn't think."

"No, it's obvious that you did not. But, that aside, I would have done the same thing in your shoes."

"What? You?"

Snape raised an eyebrow and said, "Have you learned nothing of me since yesterday afternoon? I thought it was clear that who I am at Hogwarts is a polar opposite of who I really am." He grinned, "I can better prove it, when we travel down to my home after the 4th of July barbeque."

"How?"

"You'll see. For now, how are you feeling?"

Harry nearly bounced, but he didn't, "Much better."

"Good! Then would you like to actually DO something this afternoon instead of stay in bed?"

Harry paused and thought for a moment, "But what if I feel sick again?"

"I highly doubt that you will. I'll carry a pepper-up-potion just in case."

"And the others…?"

"…Most likely planned this. They are all gone, at some store or another."

"So, you never hated me?" Harry asked as he stood up.

"Well, I did…dislike…you for a great while. You've since then distorted my vision of your life, so I can't REALLY find a way to dislike you. And…You aren't your father." He took a deep breath, "I had no right to judge you for what your appearance represented to me."

"Wait," Harry grinned, "was that an apology?"

"You will not hear the word 'sorry' out of my mouth, so yes. Now, hush up." With a flick of his wand, Snape transfigured Harry's clothes back to normal.

"You apologized yesterday. I heard the words 'I'm sorry,' I think, twice? Was it?"

Snape chuckled, "Lapse in judgment, I assure you."

"Oh? Was that all?"

"Momentary. A fleeting moment in which I seemed to have been replaced by a doppelganger, very wicked, indeed." When Snape laughed, his entire face changed, this was something Harry was beginning to notice. The hard contours of his features softened and his persona became brighter. It was amazing, Harry thought, how such a small thing such as laughter could change one's visage so drastically.

"So, where are we going, Professor?"

"First, we are to get you a proper, non-greasy, healthy, but very yummy lunch. As well as myself, since I have not yet eaten. Then, I was thinking we could drive up to the lake and possibly go swimming. It's a tourist spot; there are little shops and such. And the best Italian Ice place I've ever been to." Thinking, he added, "And you may call me Severus. I see no reason to continuously refer to me as Professor or Sir."

Harry raised his eyebrows but said nothing in reference to his professor's name, instead, he asked, "Why don't we apparate? We can side-along, can't we?"

Snape huffed, "Driving is SO much more fun!" He grinned and jiggled his keys in his pocket, "Something about breaking speeding laws and then obliviating cops is just…invigorating!"

True to his word Snape made sure that Harry's lunch was healthy and without any grease. They each had salads at a Greek Café with lemonade and pita bread. When they were back on the road and headed north, Harry rolled his window down and let the wind caress his face. It felt almost as good as flying.

A little over 15 minutes later, they stopped again to buy Harry a bathing suit. Snape showed more of his mischievous side by buying Harry several vintage rock tees, pointing out that the young Wizard could not be seen with him in public unless properly dressed.

They ended up spending more than an hour in the store, Harry buying a multitude of jeans and tees that the professor approved of as 'rock' enough. He was even witness to Snape shopping for himself, and when they left the store, Harry donned some of his new clothes. He wore new blue jeans with a red t-shirt sporting a black Aerosmith logo. He had never even heard of the band, but Snape had assured him that they were pretty much close to godliness. Not for the first time Harry wondered just how much of himself the professor hid at Hogwarts.

It was near 4:30 by the time they reached the lake. The banks were still packed by locals and tourists, easily separated by the varied degrees of tanning. "I'm not one for lake swimming, usually. So you can have your fun in the water. I may take a dip or so, but I will most definitely enjoy the shops," Snape paused and grinned, "They have the coolest shit. And you tell anyone that I used the word 'cool,' I will chop you into little pieces and feed you to the squid at Hogwarts."

Harry laughed, "I want to look in the shops first."

Snape nodded, "This is my favorite," he said, leading him into an incense-laced building. It was filled with the most bizarre items Harry had ever seen. There was a wall of incense, housing different scents as well as holders that ranged from the standard piece of wood to a three foot tall elephant that held the incense stick in its trunk. The floor of the store was filled with 4-way racks, Z-racks, and tables, all piled with the oddest clothing. He poked through some of the racks before turning to face a wall lined with glassed shelves. Figures of Muggle ideas of Wizards, Faeries, Dragons, and every other sort of creature thought to be myth were places sporadically with handwritten signs stating, "DO NOT TOUCH! DRAGONS BITE!" and "UNATTENDED CHILDREN WILL BE GIVEN CAFFEINE AND A WHISTLE!"

Another shelf housed handmade instruments. Harry picked up one of the drums. The painting on the base showed an evil looking man that was closely related to the image of Satan blowing fire from his mouth onto a charred man with wings. He nearly dropped the item in his haste to put it down.

Snape was chatting up an attendant who stood behind a glass counter filled with jewelry. In the professor's hands was large wooden fat man. When he caught Harry's eyes, he put the statue on the counter, turned it to face Harry, winked, and pointed at it. "Buddha. What do you think?"

"What are you going to do with that? You're not a Buddhist?! THAT requires being KIND."

Snape laughed and shook his head, "No, but he's cool looking isn't he? I thought I'd put it in my classroom and really give the students a roll."

"You have a sick, twisted, sense of humor, do you know that?"

"If I was really sick, I'd hang those over my desk." He gestured to a bundle of shrunken heads hanging from the ceiling.

"You would too, I know you would."

"I am highly contemplating it."

"You should, man," the attendant said. His voice was lazy and he had blonde dreads hanging passed his shoulders. "Scare those kids, man, it would be fucking hysterical!"

Snape winked at Harry, "I'm already anticipating the first years," he turned back to the employee, "I'll take three. And Buddha. And one of those brown leather bags with the Native American designs on them, yes, that one behind the counter," the man handed it to him, "Oh, and the incense I handed you before. And…" Snape tapped his chin, looking around the store. "That Wizard figure, he looks like someone I know." Again, he grinned and winked at Harry. The figurine was brought over and the teen started to laugh right when he saw it. It was a white bearded Wizard in an obscene blue pointed hat with berries on it in blue dress robes littered with stars. He was kneeling over a tree stump, pointing his wand, his other hand on his hip. "Look, Harry," Snape said with an impish glean in his eyes, "it's Professor Dumbledore."

"Oh, he's gonna kill you! I'm gonna tell, I am! You're making fun of the headmaster!" Harry poked at the purple wand in the hand of the figurine, adding an extra jab to the star on top of it. "It's ridiculous!" But he couldn't help but laugh, the ceramic Wizard was just so absurd!

"I'm going to give it to him. He'll put it in his office; I know he will. Hey, Revo, What do you got to interest a 16-year-old?"

"Revo?" Harry asked.

"My parents were hippies." He nodded and grinned. "Revolution Rain Ross."

"Wait, that's your NAME? Like real name?"

"It's on my birth certificate, little man. Anyway, interesting for a kid who's 16 and thinks Revolution is weirder than Severus... Hmmm..."

"My name is most certainly not more bizarre then Revolution!" Snape said, crossing his arms.

Revo ignored him, "Been coming in here for years, telling me I'm the odd one." He said to Harry. "What are you into?"

Harry smirked, "Magic."

"That's awesome little man, come with me!" He led Harry to the back of the store. "Okay, so these candles represent different things with each color. And they're supposed to heighten those emotions if you light them. And this is a journal for spells and such." He handed Harry a worn leather bound book. The front was engraved with a silver quarter moon. "I dunno, little man, there's loads of stuff here dealing with magic, we even have cauldrons."

Peering closer, Harry examined the black caldron and shook his head. "Not the standard thickness." He heard Snape snort behind him. "I like the journal though. And, even if they're crock, I wanna get those candles."

Revo smiled and took down a package of the thick candles. "Will this be together?"

"No," Harry said just as Snape was saying "Yes". Harry glared.

"I will be paying." Snape said smoothly.

"You paid for lunch."

"How observant, Potter. Revo?" The blonde nodded and snatched the journal from Harry's hand. He began ringing everything up.

"Pain in the arse." Harry muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"That's what I thought."

After looking through some of the other little shops, including a used CD store in which Harry had the employees aid in his musical expansion (much to Snape's dismay, the boy seemed to like that new crap better the [Hmph!] good music HE listened too.) they finally made their way toward the water.

Snape laid out a blanket, sat, kicked his shoes off and watched a volleyball game going on about 10 yards from them. Harry sat on his other side and opened the CDs he had just bought.

"I need a CD player. Can we stop somewhere so I can get one?"

Snape disdainfully eyed the album in his hand. "If you insist."

"Problem, Professor?"

"I'm sorry, what's my name?"

Harry had been having issues with this all day. "Revolution?"

"Cheeky brat."

"Severus Snape, git of the dungeons."

"Charming," Snape grinned, "And you, Harry Potter, Boy-Who-Wouldn't-Bloody-Die."

"Yeah, something like that."

"Let me see that," Snape said, taking the album from his hands. "What type of band name is My Chemical Romance, anyway?"

"The type that is on the same list as Guns 'N Roses."

Snape gasped, "You bite your tongue!"

"No way, that would hurt and then I couldn't tease you."

He was answered with a grunt. "'Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge.' Are they joking?"

"'Appetite for Destruction' much?"

Another grunt, "And then, of course, we have the stunning follow up called "The Black Parade.' How brooding." Sifting through the other CDs Harry bought, Snape snorted out their names. "Linkin Park? All American Rejects? 30 Seconds to Mars, Harry honestly, I've tried, within the past 24 hours, to instill in you good music and you come out with…what? The Killers? What IS that?"

"I heard some of the songs in the store and I liked them!"

"Good Charlotte? Where do they come up with these names?!"

Harry coughed and, to Snape, it sounded suspiciously like 'AC/DC'.

"All right! Truce! I get it; band names are ridiculous all around the board. I thought you liked the stuff I played in my car?"

"Never said I didn't." Slipping off his shirt and jeans and leaving himself only in his swim shorts, Harry kicked sand on Snape and ran off to the water.

"Brat!" The professor yelled, wiping sand off his jeans.

In no time, it seemed, Harry was involved in a water game with some of the other Muggle teens at the lake. Every second or so, he heard a yell of 'MARCO!' followed by giggles and several voices, including Harry's, answering back, 'POLO!'

Stretching, the potions master laid back and closed his eyes, enjoying the feel of the sun on his face. It was nearing six and he knew that the lifeguards were off duty at seven. In the meantime, he relaxed and occasionally strained his ears to hear Harry's voice to make sure he was okay.

Closing his eyes, Snape allowed himself to drift.

&&&

"What the hell is your problem?!"

"Get off of me!"

"Someone call the cops, this is ridiculous! Let him go!"

There was that familiar and odd feeling in between being awake and asleep that Snape felt. His chest felt light and he winced as he was roughly pulled from the latter. Blinking, he groaned as the voices grew louder. One was gruff and drunk sounding, another distressed, and another accusing. There were other voices, mostly echoes of the third and it wasn't until the second voice pleaded to be released again that the professor realized that it belonged to Harry.

He shot up quickly, standing and sending sand everywhere. "Harry?" he called out. Though still foggy from his nap, the sensation a horrible panic was rising up within him.

"Severus!"

It was coming from down by the water and Snape was sprinting towards the scene before he could fully comprehend it. A Muggle man who was taller than Snape was and much more muscled had Harry's right arm in his grip. The teen was grimacing and struggling to free himself while several onlookers, mostly female, or too young to help, looked on. One woman was yelling at the man loudly.

"What the hell is going on?" Snape snapped, as soon as he became close enough. The man who held Harry turned to face him.

"None of your damned business, Asshole!"

The smell of alcohol accosted Snape's senses. Oh, perfect. He took a moment to regain his ground. "Let him go. Now."

"I have an idea, you fucking Brit, go back to your own country. And take your stupid accent with you!"

Was that supposed to be an insult? "If that's the case, I'll take him as well, because if you haven't noticed, he's also British, you bloody imbecile."

"He's a lot cuter than you."

Snape felt vomit rise in his throat. "You are drunk, and you do not want to get into it with me. Let. Him. Go."

"I don't want to get into you, but I wouldn't mind getting into him!" the laugh that he gave after saying that made Snape feel even more sick. He glanced at Harry's terror-stricken face; the boy was struggling more frantically when the words left the drunk's mouth.

"I'm calling the cops!" the woman yelled, "I'm calling them, now," she had her cell phone out, "unless you let him go!"

The man only deepened his drunken grin and grabbed Harry's other arm, causing the boy to yell out in pain. "Severus, help!" His green eyes were wide with fear and pleading.

Snape had had enough. He lunged toward the man, hoping to have him release Harry in order to defend himself. But the potions professor grabbed only air as he fell and hit the sand and the familiar 'crack!' that sounded made his heart drop.


	4. No Sleep Till Queens?

**Title: **Impalpable

**Author: **Ria Rose

**Summary:**A summer road trip through Muggle America turns ill when the car that Ron, Hermione, and Harry have purchased breaks down. Walking to the nearest gas station, Harry encounters the last person he thought he ever wanted to see…and his 87 Camaro. But there's a side to Severus Snape that no one knows about: a free riding rebel that would rather don older rock tees than robes and still breaks rules wherever hef can. Little do they know it, but the Golden Trio is in for one hell of a summer. - Summer after sixth Year - Non-HBP and DH compliant.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own ANYTHING identifiable to the Harry Potter world. J.K. Rowling gets that privilege. Anything you don't recognize, that shits all mine. And I will open up a heaping can of whoop-ass on anyone that tries to steal my shit. Thank you, come again!

**Just as a side note, so you all know, this story is also archives at the (Wonderful!) PotionsandSnitches[dot]net. I have several chapters written. I'm trying for a light and fluffy story with some drama to keep things interesting.**

**By the way**: I was a little shit and made this **contemporary**. Meaning, I moved this up about ten years to make life easy concerning what Harry listens to. Don't like, don't read. **Nah nah nah nah nahhhhh nah!**

**Chapter Four: No Sleep Till...Queens?**

What transpired next was a pale blur to Severus Snape, as both magical and muggle authorities were alerted. Although since the kidnapping was done by apparating, Harry could be anywhere and it didn't fully make sense to alert both parties. But by the time all of the witnesses were interviewed (and then obliviated by Aurors) Harry had been missing for nearly three hours and Snape felt the beginnings of a killer headache.

"Sir, I'm Auror Michael Jenkins." Snape looked up from staring at the untouched possessions of Harry's on the blanket. A tall wizard stood in front of him with sandy blond hair and brown eyes. The professor nodded his acknowledgment of him, looked back down at the CDs and discarded clothing, and swore under his breath. It was hard to believe that only a few short hours ago he was teasing the boy about his choices in music. "Mr. Snape, there really isn't anything else you can do here. You should go home and rest and we'll be in contact." The dark-haired wizard snapped his head up to look at the man.

"No." Snape said, "Absolutely not. I'm not leaving without Harry." Doing his best to intimidate the auror, he put on his most unsurpassed glare.

"I'm sorry, I know this is very hard for you, but it's prudent that you return home. There really isn't anything you can do at the moment." The light haired wizard was barely fazed by the glare that usually sent his students running. Snape dropped the look.

"I can't just do nothing!" He snapped, "This is my fault to begin with. I have to-"

"I understand your distress, Sir," Jenkins interrupted firmly, "but I really must ask you to go home. If the kidnapper makes contact-"

"He won't. He didn't want money. He…He was making se…sexual advances. Toward Harry. Fuck. Shit! If he lays one finger on him…!"

"Please, Mr. Snape, you need to rest, you've been through quite an ordeal. I can apparate you if you don't feel up to it." He moved to take Snape's arm but the professor stepped back quickly.

"No. Besides, I drove."

Jenkins nodded, "Then I will escort you to your car." The implication was obvious; he wanted to make sure that Snape did indeed leave.

Forfeiting, the potions master nodded, gathered up his and Harry's belongings, and allowed the auror to walk him to the Camaro.

&&&

There was laughter coming from the dining room when Snape entered the house. He quietly shut the door, allowing himself several moments of peace before he told of his irresponsibility. For a moment he stood still, hand on the closed front door and his head tilted toward the sound of his happy friends and students. They were trading stories of mishaps, it seemed, as he heard Jena complete her telling of the time she accidently transfigured her baby brother into a turtle. Ron launched into one of the many adventures he, Hermione, and Harry had stumbled into, his voice loud with excitement.

'Ironic, isn't it?' Snape thought to himself. 'Of all the times Harry could have met his end through the years, this, a simple kidnapping, is going to be the one to do it.' He caught himself, 'No! Don't think like that! Why must you ALWAYS be a Negative Nancy!' The last was in Georgie's voice.

"If you think that's bad," Ron was saying when Snape began listening again, "You should have seen Harry disarm Snape. He went FLYING across the room!" Ah, so the incident in the Shrieking Shack when they were in third year was what they were talking about. Snape groaned softly, a 13-year-old had pretty much owned him, and by the laughter from his friends, he knew he wasn't about to live that down.

If, that was, they ever spoke to him again when they learned he had lost the Boy-Who-Lived.

'Oh, Merlin,' sighed Snape as he pushed away from the door and made his way to the dining room. Georgie, Baylor, Jena, Lucy and the two teens were seated around the table, empty pizza boxes were piled in the corner and a box of chocolate covered doughnuts sat open in the middle of the table. Ron was biting into one as he continued the story, "Of course Old Snapers wasn't too keen on Harry knocking him out when he came to, but hey, doesn't change the fact that it's still funny now!"

Snape stood in the doorway, watching the scene in front of him and not wanting to interrupt and inform them of what had happened. Saying it would only make it more real. But if Severus Snape was anything, he sure as hell wasn't a coward. He stepped into the room.

"Speaking of Old Snapers! He has returned!" Baylor said with his voice light. Ron wheeled around in his chair.

"Oh, crap, don't kill me!"

This only sent his friends into hysterics and had Hermione shaking her head, "Honestly, Ronald," she scolded.

There was no use in delaying the inevitable, Snape cleared his throat and said, "I need to-" but he was interrupted by Georgie.

"Where's Harry? You exhaust him today?" The man was beaming, happy that the two were getting along.

"No, he…I…" He made a frustrated noise. "We went up to the lake in Cooperstown and some guy…well…wizard, actually, took him. I'm sorry. I fell asleep, I was irresponsible, and he was kidnapped." All this was said with Snape looking straight at Georgie in the bravest manner possible. He didn't dare look at his students.

"WHAT?!" That was Ron. He stood quickly, his chair falling back. "What do you mean?!"

"I think I spoke clearly, Mr. Weasley! Harry was kidnapped, all right?"

"You notified congress? That Harry Potter went missing?" Jena asked.

"Of course I did! Both magical and muggle services know. How stupid do you think I am?!"

"They know where to contact you?"

Snape glared his answer to Hermione's question, "Obviously."

"We all need to calm down, Sev, I know you," Georgie said, "you get upset, you get defensive. So just stop while you're ahead. Tell us everything."

Taking a deep breath and seating himself tiredly at the table, he began his tale of the events preceding the kidnapping and what had taken place afterwards. When he finished, everyone remained quiet for a long while.

It was Lucy who spoke first, "They know what they're doing, the aurors, they know. And they'll find Harry and he'll be fine, okay?" It was meant to reassure, but it wasn't helping at all.

The silence then affected the group like a bad cold and Snape found it nearly impossible to look the teens in the eyes.

A ringing sound startled the quiet and nearly all of them shook in surprise.

"That's my floo!" Georgie jumped up.

"I told them to contact me here!" Snape was rushing toward the living room even as he spoke. The others raced to follow him. But by the time they all scrambled into the room, the head in the floo was leaving and Snape was turning to face the group, his face hopeful, "They found him! I need to go down to New York City. Now." He was already stepping into the floo and grabbing a fistful of powder.

"Is he okay?!" Ron yelled. His hand gripping Hermione's tightly.

"They didn't say; I have to go. American Congress of Magic!" And he was gone in a rush of green flames.

&&&

Harry did not know where he was. All he was aware of was the seedy and horrible smelling room that the man had apparated him too, the muggle man who turned out to be a wizard, that is. He was left, locked, in the room for a long time before the man finally reappeared.

The teen's heart beat rapidly, pounding in his chest as he realized that his wand was lying under his jeans on the beach. He had no way to protect himself.

Like a cornered deer, his eyes shot wildly around him, searching for some form of escape. The drunken wizard hovered over him, a gleam in his glazed over eyes that told Harry all he needed to know about the man's intentions.

But he'd be damned before he let anyone touch him *like that*.

Dropping to the floor in false defeat, he waited until the perv was leaning over him to lean back and kick him in the crotch. With his kidnapper doubled over in pain, Harry lunged for the familiar outline in his jeans pocket: his wand. He ripped the wand from the perv's pocket and pointed it at him.

"A wizard," the man gasped, still hunched over in pain.

Harry only smirked and with a flick of the borrowed wand called out, "_Stupify_!" It was satisfying to watch the pervert sail across the room, but Harry knew that he could not stick around any longer.

Slipping the wand in the waistband of his swim trunks, Harry ran from the room, in his haste, however, he failed to check the rooms in which he ran into. Two other equally dirty looking wizards were seated on a greasy, grey couch watching American Football. They jumped to their feet when Harry burst into the room. The television was so loud it wasn't a wonder why they hadn't heard his former spell. Their wands were stretched in front of them, but, in their own drunken states, they had not the reflexes to react before Harry brandished the stolen wand.

"Expelliarmus! Petrificus Totalus!"

With the two men disabled, Harry bolted, finally making his way out and into the hallway. It was then that he knew he had been taken to an apartment. His body was catching up to his mind though and Harry panted as he darted his eyes around the disgusting hallway. At the end, behind him, was a red EXIT sign, though at the moment it was looking rather blurry. Giving himself up to survival instinct, he ran, just as the door from the apartment he had just escaped banged open.

"Get back here, you little shit!"

Pushing through the door to the staircase, the teen didn't even bother to look behind him; he already knew he was being pursued.

Jumping down the steps at such a force that he slammed into the wall every time he came to the end of each set of stairs, Harry finally made his way into the entrance lobby of the building. Sprinting past a wall of mailboxes, he aimed for the front door.

Pain engrossed his wrist as the man grabbed it, finally catching up to him. Harry cried out –he was so close! –and even more so when he felt the bone in his left wrist snap as the man twisted his arm.

Pulling him close, the perv wrapped his arms around him and whispered in Harry's ear. "You're mine." The smell of beer assaulted the teen's senses and he gagged. He ran his hand down Harry's bare chest. "Where's my wand, little boy?"

Again, Harry allowed human instinct to take control. He bent his head down and bit hard on the arm that entrapped him.

"Fuck!" the perv yelled and loosened his grip on Harry long enough that the boy was able to squirm free. The man yelled and reached for him, but Harry was already out the door and running, at full speed, down the street.

He allowed himself a respite several blocks away to catch his breath. The neighborhood was broken down and dreary, the buildings the color of cold gravy and the streets littered with potholes. Each building he passed looked out at him like depressed old men, the windows sagging and sad, as if they remembered times long forgotten when the sparse lawns were green and children ran and played through the gushing waters of now decrepit looking fire hydrants.

Wrapping his arms around himself and cradling his injured wrist, Harry walked. His bare feet stung from running unprotected on pavement and his wrist sent sparks into his vision. Up ahead, standing on a corner, were two young men. Their dress reminded Harry of the rap music videos on television that Dudley used to watch. He approached them warily.

"Excuse me, but could either of you tell me where the local authorities are located?"

The taller of the two, a white boy seemingly in his mid twenties, laughed outright. The other, a short and slim black boy who looked to be about the same age, lightly hit the other boy. "Look at this shit! What you doing playin' in this neighborhood, junior. Shouldn't you be in some prep school?"

"Please," Harry pleaded, holding his injured arm closer to his body. Emotions were catching up to him and he felt his eyes well with tears. Why did these things always happen to him?

The white boy adjusted his baseball cap and flipped up the hood of his white zipper hoodie. "Please, sir, I want some more!" he mocked.

The other boy laughed. "Come on, dawg, let's blow this shit." He lit a cigarette and the two began to walk away.

"No! Please! I need help!" They stopped and turned to face him, watching silently as the tears in Harry's eyes spilled over and slid down his cheeks.

"Shit, son, what the hell happened to you?" asked the tall boy.

"I was taken; by some man…I just…I got away. Please, just tell me where a police station is, anything!"

"Three blocks up, two to your right." The other one said.

Harry nodded and turned to walk in the direction he was pointed to. "Wait." He turned to face the two boys. The white one pulled his hood down, "We'll…we'll walk you." The other nodded. "We didn't know you were kidnapped, son."

Harry shrugged and began walking; the two boys flanked on either side of him. "I'm Lonnie," the black boy said, "and this is my best friend Paul."

"Harry." was the only answered they received.

The two shared a glance over his head. "Where you from?" Paul asked.

"England." Harry paused, "Where am I?"

"You in Queens, son."

"Where?"

Lonnie bit his lip, "New York?"

"Oh, yeah. He took me from a lake in Cooperstown."

Both boys stopped and gawked, "Cooperstown, that's upstate!" Harry shook his head, not quite understanding. "We downstate, Junior, Cooperstown's like 4 hours away from here."

"Oh."

"Damn, Son. When'd he take you?" Paul asked.

"Today."

"So he didn't, you know, do anything?"

Harry shrugged and gestured to his wrist. "He did this when I was trying to escape."

"Could be a lot worse, junior," Lonnie said, "I seen it happen. You one lucky kid, junior, and you don't even know."

By the time they reached the police station, Harry was shivering from exhaustion, pain, and the still slightly damp bathing suit. The sun had long since set and night air was cool. Paul removed his hoodie and draped it around Harry's shoulders, zipping up the front over his arms. They entered the station and Lonnie spoke in hushed tones to the woman behind the front desk while Paul stood with Harry by the entrance. The woman nodded, made a call, and moved from behind the desk. Lonnie rejoined Harry and Paul.

"This where we leave, junior. Hope you okay."

"Thank you," Harry said in a quiet voice, he moved to take off the hoodie.

"Keep it," Paul said, "I have more."

"Thanks." Harry's voice was quiet with appreciation. He watched as the two friends left the building and walked down the street.

"Harry?" the woman asked.

"You know my name?"

"The young man told me, come on, come here, have a seat, sweetie. Are you okay?"

"My wrist. I think it's broken." Using his right hand, he unzipped the hoodie to show her. It was swollen and crooked.

"Looks like it," she said. "My name is Officer Hannah Douglas, okay? My sergeant is coming out to speak with you, all right?" Harry nodded. "For now, let's get that in a splint and we'll get you to a hospital as soon as possible." Briefly, Harry wondered if she would know where the American version of the Ministry of Magic was, but he doubted it. He nodded again and she led him into a back room that served as both break room and as an area to treat injuries of those who come into the station. It was an odd mix, bandages and gauze next to a microwave and bottles of painkillers and antiseptic lined up next to the coffee creamers. Very carefully, she placed his wrist into a splint and was about to call for an escort to take the boy to the hospital when an officer walked in.

"I'll take care of it, Douglas."

"Sergeant McDermott, this is Harry." Officer Douglas said. She smiled reassuringly to Harry and left the room. Harry looked up from his seat on an old brown leather couch and judged the man wearily. He was about 6 feet tall with short blonde hair, bright blue eyes, and a friendly smile.

"Can you tell me what happened, Harry? I'll drive you over to the hospital as we speak, is that okay? You need to have your wrist better looked at."

"He took me…from the lake…I…" Looking up at the man, Harry weighed his options. He'd much rather a mediwitch heal his wrist with magic then go through the more painful and elongated process of muggle healing. But how did he go about telling the cop this? Better yet, how did he tell the man that he was apparated here? This wasn't a muggle kidnapping by any means, but at the time of his escape, it just seemed the rational thing to look for the muggle authorities since he did not know how to go about asking for the wizard ones. "I don't want to go to the hospital, Sir, please."

"Harry, you need to have that wrist seen to."

"I just want to get back with my friends and my professor."

McDermott thought for a moment. "Are you in America for vacation?" he asked, taking the hint from Harry's accent.

"Yes, Sir."

"With your professor?"

Harry squirmed in his seat, realizing the awkward position he had put himself in. He didn't want to give too much information to the man if he was ignorant to the existence of wizards; he didn't want him asking too many questions that Harry couldn't answer. So, instead, Harry chose his words carefully and explained of the road trip he, Ron, and Hermione had taken and how their car had broken down. He explained that his teacher had happened upon Harry walking and had taken them in for the moment. "He took me up to the lake today and while I was in the water he was napping on the shore. And this man was drunk and he…well I had come out of the water because the lifeguards had said that they were off duty and we had to swim at our own risk and I wanted to ask my professor if that was all right when he grabbed me and took me."

Sgt. McDermott nodded, "How did he take you in broad daylight? Was he armed?"

"Well, he…" Harry paused and looked down, how on earth was he going to explain this? "I…I don't know."

"Were you unconscious?"

"Not exactly, no."

"Harry, you can tell me, it's all right."

But Harry couldn't tell him, he knew that. If he even insinuated magic being used the sergeant would definitely think him insane and most likely making the whole kidnapping up.

"How did you escape?" Sgt. McDermott asked, obviously sensing his unease and changing the subject.

"I kicked him and ran…" Harry answered, carefully omitting. "And then when I was close to the front doors, he caught up with me and grabbed me and twisted my wrist. He pulled me against him but I bit him. And then I ran again. And I didn't stop until I saw Lonnie and Paul."

"The two young men who brought you in?"

"Yeah."

"Do you know them, before all this? Did you know them?"

"No, Sir."

The Sergeant nodded and stood while he pulled out his wallet. He plucked two dollar bills from the leather case and handed them to Harry. "There's a soda machine down the hall, help yourself. I'm gonna put out an APB to look for any suspicious behavior, all right? Then we'll get you to the hospital."

Harry nodded and held onto the dollars tightly. He waited until McDermott had left the room to stand and make his way down the hallway to the vending machines. Selecting a Cherry Coca-Cola, he paid and retrieved the bottle. It was while he walking back that the pain in his sore feet flared up and he hobbled and lost his balance, falling against the wall. The stolen wand slipped from his waistband and clattered on the floor.

"Harry?" the sergeant stepped into the hallway. Harry was scrambling to pick up the wand and conceal it, but the man had already seen it. "You're one of them." Hastily tucking the offending object away, the young Wizard did his best to look like he had no idea what the cop was talking about. McDermott bent down and picked up the fallen Coke bottle. "Come on, back in the break room, there ya go. Have a seat; I didn't realize your feet were so bad."

Clutching the bottle after it was given back to him, Harry remained quiet. He sat on the couch and waited.

"The man who took you," McDermott said, "was he a wizard also?" Harry swallowed and nodded. "Christ that makes it harder to find him. Though, I'm sure, I mean I guess that your version of cops is better prepared to find someone like him. Is that how he took you then? That's why you were afraid to tell me?" Again, Harry nodded. "Okay, well in that case, I'm not taking you to the hospital. Wizards have their own ways of healing, correct?"

"Yeah, but…How do you know about us, Sir?"

"We had a bit of a problem, few years back, with bad wizards in the area. I became caught up in things and it was decided that my knowing, as a sergeant, and my captain's knowing also, was what was best for our area, so that we could adequately deal with situations that manifested in our precinct."

"So, what are you going to do with me?"

He smiled, "I'm gonna take you into the City to the ACM and there they'll fix up your wrist and take you back to your professor."

"The ACM?"

"The American Congress of Magic. What's it called in England, which is where I'm assuming you're from?"

"It is. And it's the Ministry of Magic there." Harry held out the wand, "It's his. I took it from him."

McDermott grabbed an empty garbage bag from a cabinet and held it open; Harry dropped the wand into it. Tying the bag closed, he said, "Come on; let's get you to the City."

"What city, sir?"

"Manhattan, Harry, we all just call it 'the City,' not sure how that came about though." He smiled and led Harry outside to a white Ford Explorer with 'NYPD' printed on its sides. "Hopefully they'll have some socks or something for your feet. They're not bleeding at least, just bruised." He opened the passenger side door and helped the teen in.

Harry had his first view of the beautiful NYC skyline that night. He stared, in awe, at the buildings and the lights as the sergeant pointed out various landmarks.

"That's the Empire State Building," he said and Harry gawked even more so. He had seen glimpses of the famous city on the television when the Dursley's actually let him watch it, but that was nothing compared to the real thing.

Harry jolted when they entered a tunnel. "Whoa…" Rolling down his window, he looked out at the beige tiles.

"We're under the East River now."

"Wicked!" For the moment Harry had forgotten about the ordeal he had just went through, he thought only of The Big Apple and it's lights and tunnels and how badly he wanted to explore the city he'd only seen in movies.

McDermott looked over at the teen next to him, happily noting that if he was allowing himself to smile now, then it was evident that not too much damage had been done by the man who abducted him. He would be just fine and the sergeant, from years of experience, knew it.

As they entered Midtown Manhattan, Harry continued to gape like a tourist. With every street they turned onto and every store, street performer, and crowd of rushing city goers they passed, the young wizard's mood rose. He was safe and in probably the coolest place in the world- at least he thought for the time being.

When they pulled up in front of the ACM, Harry was happily shocked to see that the building held some of the beautiful old architecture that many of the buildings in the city held. That and it was obviously not as hidden as the Ministry was. Or perhaps it had charms on it that made the bronze sign above the door stating 'American Congress of Magic' invisible to muggles.

Stepping down from the SUV, Harry continued to take in his surroundings as the sergeant spoke to an auror standing on guard outside the door. He handed him the bag with the wand in it and nodded over to Harry whose neck was craned as he looked to the top of the buildings.

"Mr. Potter? I'm Auror Daniel Smith, please come with me." Harry was startled for a brief moment when the wizard spoke. He hadn't noticed when he was approached.

"Okay," Harry said and waved good-bye the sergeant and followed the auror inside.

&&&

He was questioned while a mediwitch fixed his wrist and fed him potions, given thick woolen socks for his feet, and sent into a lounge to wait for his professor. The furthest wall was all glass, a window that overlooked the busy street below. Harry sat on the red couch that was closest to the window, propped his head up with his right arm, and stared out into the night, content to lose himself in the bright lights.

When the door again opened, about 45 minutes later, Harry had expected to see another auror, but what he saw instead was his professor, looking worn, tired, and relieved.

"Severus!"

It was uncharacteristic. It was something he would never have thought himself to do. It was an action that he would later deny, but at the moment, he couldn't care less. Stalking forward, Snape pulled Harry close and hugged him, feeling far too emotional to trust his voice.

Harry was alive and untouched. He had escaped the pervert with a broken wrist that was easily mended and there was no accusation in those green eyes of his.

"Thank Merlin you're all right!"

The young wizard reveled in the embrace, enjoying and cherishing the safe feeling that was emitted into his very being. Severus would protect him; he knew that. Severus would make sure that the feeling he felt upon coming to the ACM and having someone come to claim him would not go away.

And for a fleeting moment, Harry wondered when exactly he had become Severus and not Snape. But it was gone as soon as it came. Because at the end of things, it really didn't matter.


	5. Barbeques, Swimming, Lost Loves

**Title: **Impalpable

**Author: **Ria Rose

**Disclaimer:** I don't own ANYTHING identifiable to the Harry Potter world. J.K. Rowling gets that privilege. Anything you don't recognize, that shits all mine. And I will open up a heaping can of whoop-ass on anyone that tries to steal my shit. Thank you, come again!

**Just as a side note, so you all know, this story is also archives at the (Wonderful!) PotionsandSnitches[dot]net. I have several chapters written. I'm trying for a light and fluffy story with some drama to keep things interesting.**

**By the way**: I was a little shit and made this **contemporary**. Meaning, I moved this up about ten years to make life easy concerning what Harry listens to. Don't like, don't read. **Nah nah nah nah nahhhhh nah!**

**PS: **_I apologize for failing at life when it comes to updating here for this story. I'll try to be better in the future! No promises though; we all know I suck at life! /Kanye Shrug _

* * *

**Chapter Five: Barbeques, Swimming, Lost Loves, Firecrackers, and Oh! A Severus too!**

"Harry!"

Enveloped by his friends, Harry felt a surge of warmth. He breathed in the scent of his two best friends, appreciating them more than he ever had before. That very moment would be a comfort to him for years to come. In the dark times when he would still be fighting Voldermort and all hope seemed lost, he would think of this moment: his friends, their embrace, their scent, and the sound of their voices and feel a rush of light invigorate his spirit.

Severus, his voice quiet, urged the two away, "Harry has had a very tiring day. It would be best for him to go to bed and have a decent night's rest."

Hermione nodded and stepped back from her friend as she wiped tears from her eyes. "I'm just so glad that you're okay…" She sniffled and smiled, "Go to sleep…And don't you ever try that again!"

Ron, overwhelmed by the experience, nodded in agreement, "Seriously, mate…"

Unable to help it, Harry hugged them again, "I'm fine, guys." Giving them a reassuring smile, he stepped back and allowed Severus to steer him toward the stairs and to the guest room. The professor's hand shook slightly on Harry's shoulder as the older man led him. The young wizard took notice, but said nothing.

Once he was in pajamas and neatly tucked in, Harry laid awake a long while. His thoughts circled like a bird looking for a place to land. Lonnie had said things could have been so much worse, but Harry did not want to think of just how much poorer they could have been. Just the thought of that man touching him that way made his stomach feel uneasy.

Rolling over, Harry shut his eyes tightly, willing the images away. He thought of Manhattan: the beautiful skyline, the rush of the streets, the sound of the traffic mingled with voices and music, and the feeling that he was nowhere and everywhere at once.

It calmed him; he found the thoughts of the afternoon fall away and leave. He imagined himself walking the streets of the city, anonymous and unknown. Just a young man going wherever he was going. No one would gape at his scar and no one would badger him about his whereabouts. These streets were too busy for anyone to attempt to take him and even though the threat was still very real, it seemed that in New York City there was no hazard of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.

Sometime later, he felt Ron slide into bed carefully, as he believed Harry to be asleep. Harry rolled over to face him.

"Sorry, didn't mean to wake you."

"You didn't."

"You okay?"

Harry nodded, "Just thinking."

"About that man?"

He shook his head, "No, about The City - Manhattan. It's just like the movies."

"The what?"

Harry giggled softly, "Muggle thing. But it's amazing Ron. I want to go back. I've never seen anything like it. Ever. It's so busy and noisy. It's like Muggles don't notice Wizards and Wizards don't notice Muggles. It's fantastic."

"Mum says it's dangerous. But she's never been there, only read about it."

Shrugging, he said, "I don't know if it is or isn't, but when I was there I felt safe, you know? Like no one could touch me. That guy didn't exist as soon as I entered it. It was like the whole thing was just a bad dream."

Ron was quiet for a long moment. "I was so scared today. For you."

"I'm sorry…"

"It's not your fault, Harry. I'm just glad that you're all right."

Smiling softly, Harry said, "It's always an adventure, huh?"

"Life would be boring if it wasn't."

Harry snorted, "Our lives are far from boring."

"Trying to sleep here!" Harry and Ron looked over to see Hermione sitting up, her arms crossed and the blankets snug around her Indian-style crossed legs, but she didn't look mad. The two boys smiled and settled down, Harry finally falling into a deep sleep moments later.

Across the hall, in room he shared with Baylor, Severus laid awake staring at the ceiling while Baylor snored in the bed next to his. He would receive no sleep that night. His guilty conscience was once again keeping him up as he thought of Lizzie, Lily, and Harry and of how he failed all of them.

Hours later, as dawn creased over the Catskills, Severus turned and rolled to his side, watching as light seeped into the room from behind the venetian blinds. Outside the fog was beginning to lift from the mountains and the greenery was slowly coming alive with the sounds of birds and the steady steps of deer as they walked along fields grazing.

And in the small town of Middleburg, a middle aged witch by the name of Elizabeth Grace was receiving a letter from her old friend from school whose owl was tapping ceaselessly at her window.

_Come to Georgie's on the 4th of July. We all miss you. Including a snarky bastard. I'll give you a hint as to who it is. His first name starts with an S and ends with an Everus. –Lucy_

* * *

The morning of July 4th dawned hot and humid and when Harry awoke, he found the blankets in a pile on the floor by the side of the bed and Ron asleep and panting next to him. Sitting up, he wiped sweat from his forehead and glanced over at Hermione. The young witch was on her back lying with her limbs spread and her hair damp with sweat.

The windows in the room were wide open and the ceiling fan on high. Harry groaned, why wasn't the air conditioner on? Standing, he briefly wondered why Georgie didn't use magic to cool his house. Of course, Georgie was the most unconventional wizard he had ever met and seemed dead set on combining muggle technology with magic, but that didn't excuse the heat!

Stretching, Harry prodded Ron but the redhead would not wake. He stood and padded over to Hermione. "Hey, 'Mione? You awake?"

"No. Go'way…"

Harry giggled, "Come on, get up and keep me company. Ron is dead to the world."

The young witch groaned and sat up. "I hate you right now. I really do."

"No, you don't."

"Make it up to me."

"How?"

"Let me have the shower first." The girl grinned and grabbed her shower stuff. With a wink and a wave she set off down the hallway while Harry tried once again in vain to wake Ron.

By 11 o'clock, the trio was up, showered and dressed and outside helping to set up the backyard for the barbeque. Hermione, used to setting up parties without magic was helping to tape red, white, and blue plastic tablecloths to the picnic tables around the yard. Yet, with every gust of wind, the tape failed and the cloths would fly up across the tables. Frustrated, Lucy began to magic them in place, whispering to Hermione not to tell Georgie.

Harry and Severus were given the job of decorating and Ron was handed patriotic confetti to sprinkle on the tables. Severus was struggling with a fountain streamer; he was attempting to hang it from the top of the large green tent he and Baylor had put up the day before. Harry was holding the ladder steady as his professor grunted and dropped the string he was using to tie it.

Reaching to retrieve the white thread, Harry said, "Sir, why don't you use magic to put it up?"

The professor took the string outstretched to him, "Because Georgie values labor. Magic tends to make life very easy and Georgie is very much correct in not allowing things to be overrun by it. This way, we appreciate it more."

"Like the air conditioner breaking?"

"Exactly, Georgie uses muggle electricity because that was how he was raised. He prefers it out of habit and thinks that we, as magical people, are spoiled by the comforts we can obtain. Sure, we could use a cooling charm but then we would never feel heat. Sometimes one must do without in order to appreciate what one has."

Harry nodded, "I guess I see his point. But why does he make you not use magic?"

"Because crossing Georgie is something I'd rather not do." Severus sighed when he finally was able to hang the streamer up. He stepped down the ladder and folded it up with an irritated snap, "I'm not even American and look at me!" He gestured to his shirt. Lucy, Baylor, and Jena had somehow convinced Severus to wear a black tee shirt with the American flag on it. To add insult to injury, Lucy had pinned a blinking flag pin to the shirt as well. It blinked annoyingly but every time Severus would try to remove it his hand was slapped.

Harry laughed quietly. He, Ron, and Hermione had gracefully accepted the shirts given to them. Ron's was blue with an eagle on it, Hermione had a white tank with red, white, and blue stars, and Harry wore a red shirt with fireworks. "If you can't beat them, Professor, join them. Isn't that the saying?"

"Bloody revolution," Severus mumbled as he stalked away with the ladder.

Lucy stepped up beside Harry and watched as Severus walked away. "Spoil sport!" She quipped. "The revolution was ages ago. You'd think he's get over it by now. But NO! Can't insult the queen! Or ministry, or…I don't know a damn thing about British Magical Government. 'Course, I always skipped that class. So that could be why."

Chuckling, Harry turned to help Georgie, who was dragging the barbeque past him and under a small white tent.

In just about two hours, the backyard was set. Coolers lined the walls, a long white one for beer, a smaller red one for soda, a blue one for juice and water, and another red one holding the frozen burgers, steaks, hotdogs, and other items to be cooked. Set in front of the coolers was a table filled with napkins, plates, forks, knives, and spoons; next to them was red beer cups and a mini-cooler filled with ice. Georgie had bought two kegs and seated them in round red tubs sporting on one the emblem of the local Quidditch team and on the other the Yankees symbol. They were packed with ice around the metal kegs and labeled 'Bud Light' and 'Bud.'

Georgie had hooked up a muggle radio so he could listen to the muggle sport of baseball (Yankees versus the Red Sox.), and a Wizard Wireless to listen the Quidditch game (the New York Bombers versus the Ohio Broomsticks.).

Severus had helped Lucy hook up speakers so they could play their rock music obnoxiously loud. Baylor constantly warned them about how not all wizards worshipped Guns 'N Roses and they better put on some good shit. "And if you think about putting on that wizard wannabe rock crap, I swear to God I'll break that fucking radio! There's ONE thing that muggles do better than wizards and THAT'S MUSIC!" Lucy just lifted her sunglasses, rolled her eyes at Baylor, and went back to what she was doing.

It was nearing four when the first guests arrived. The trio sat at one of the red wooden picnic tables and ate chips as they watched the yard fill up with witches and wizards. Now and then Severus would lead someone over to introduce them, but usually, it seemed, he couldn't be bothered. He was too busy sipping a bottled Bud and making fun of Georgie's apron and chef's hat as the older wizard barbequed.

The first group of kids to arrive were Baylor's. Gina and Michelle were 14 and 16 respectively and in an instant, Harry knew he had found love in Michelle's dark hair and beautiful brown eyes. Then she opened her mouth and the feeling vanished.

"You know, I was SUPPOSED to be at the MALL with RICHARD and not HERE in the middle of bumfuck New York at some lame ass barbeque." With a huff, she sat across from Harry and Hermione and next to Ron. The red head inched away from her and Hermione rolled her eyes. "I know RIGHT?" Michelle exclaimed, thinking Hermione's action was one of agreeing with her own. Hermione's eyes went wide but, thankfully, she kept her mouth shut.

Gina, on the other hand, was awkwardly pretty with mousey brown hair and grey eyes. She had a nose too small for her face but full lips, a brilliant smile, and a much better personality than her sister.

She extended her hand, "I'm Gina." The trio each took her hand and introduced themselves. "And this," she jerked her thumb toward her sister, "is Michelle. Dad is out to get her and Richard is her snot nosed idiot boyfriend."

"Ew! Shut up!" Michelle yelled, stood, and stormed off toward her father. "DA-AH-AD! Gina is RUINING EVERYTHING!"

"Is she always like that?" Harry asked.

"Uh-uh."

"My apologies."

"Thanks."

There was a screech across the lawn. "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU WOULD DO THIS TO ME, DAD! YOU'RE RUINING MY LIFE!" With another screech, Michelle covered her face and took off into the house crying.

"I have this theory," Gina started, "That she's actually a dragon that was transformed into a human. And that's why her temper is so bad. Either that or the PMS potion backfired again."

"Or someone stole her egg." Harry said, remembering his fourth year.

"What?"

"Nesting mother dragons, they're pretty vicious."

"OH! That explains EVERYTHING! She had to have been switched at birth!"

Hermione cracked up, "Was that Michelle's golden egg, Harry?"

"Must have been. Can't believe she's still pissed about that!"

"What are you guys talking about?" Gina asked with a laugh.

"Nothing, nothing." Harry said, "But I think I know what type of dragon your sister is."

"And what would that be?"

Ron grinned and quipped, "A Hungarian Horntail."

Gina laughed loudly, "Well, there's your problem!"

* * *

As the sun set, muggle fireworks were brought out in large crates. Severus lit a bottle rocket and grinned as it took off. "Best part? These are completely illegal in New York." He lit another with the burning end of his cigarette. It took off out the empty beer bottle he was using to launch it and whistled into the sky. Turning to Harry, Severus held the bottle out. "Want to try?"

"Yes!" Jumping up from the lawn chair he was seated in, Harry stood at Severus' side and took the bottle.

"Okay, so what you need to do is slip the bottle rocket in like this, and light this end, here," he reached into his pocket and pulled out his pack of Marlboro Reds and lit one using his already burning cigarette. Handing it to Harry, he warned, "Don't smoke it or I swear to God I'll make life miserable at Hogwarts next year. Just use it to light the fireworks. Place it up by the…Right good. Now hold your arm out and shake the bottle gently. Up Harry! Raise your arm up!" Severus laughed, "You're going to set the damn house on fire!"

Harry blushed and raised his arm, pointing the bottle upwards; he had never set off fireworks before. Lightly, he shook the bottle and the loud whistle of the firecracker shot out and sailed into the air. Harry laughed happily.

"Want to try another?" At Harry's nod, he put five bottle rockets into the bottle. "Light then all together, hold your arm up and keep shaking."

Across the yard, Ron and Hermione watched as rocket after rocket took flight into the air from the bottle. Harry looked so happy, happier than they had ever seen him. Severus took out another type firework and showed Harry how to light it; he threw it several yards from them and laughed when Harry jumped as the explosive bangs sounded.

Harry was elated. He smiled up at the man he had once sworn to hate. No longer did he see the greasy bat of the dungeons. Instead, in its place, was the James Dean of professors: Severus Snape, cool and casual in Levis and boots, pockets jiggling with spare muggle change and Marlboros, his hair tied back and arms filled with tattoos.

Hermione tilted her head as she watched her friend; the way Harry was looking at Severus was the way she and Ron looked at their own fathers.

* * *

It was nearing nine when Georgie fired up the barbeque again. On it went the marinated chicken breasts, steaks, and tinfoil wrapped corn. The trio licked their lips at the smells and waited expectantly for the food even though they had only eaten dinner a few hours before. But cheeseburgers and Lucy famous macaroni salad couldn't compete, no matter how delicious Lucy's salad was, with steaks and barbequed corn on the cob.

Gina had proven herself to be a fun companion, as she, the trio and two other teens named Corey and Jay bonded while swimming and poking fun at Michelle and the other children who were too snotty to ruin their hair by swimming in the pool.

Now, as Georgie cooked, the group sat on towels just outside the pool, drying off in the heat and talking nonsense about music, magic, and school. Neither Jay nor Corey made a big deal about Harry's scar and Gina had already shown herself to not be an avid follower of Harry Potter. Harry was able to relax around them.

"Is that who I think it is?"

Harry looked up to see what had drawn Corey attention from their current conversation about what was better: wizard rock music or muggle rock music, to see a beautiful witch walk further into the yard. Her dark hair was long and swayed as she walked.

"Who is that?" Ron asked.

"That the woman in the picture!" Hermione's voiced was hushed and rushed, "I think she dated Professor Snape!" Harry's mouth dropped.

"They didn't just date, they were practically engaged. They broke up when The Hogwarts headmaster offered Uncle Sev a position." Jay interjected. "He pretty much broke her heart."

"Oh come off it, Jay, it was mutual. Sev was devastated as well." Gina said. "I wonder why she's here."

"I'll give you two guesses," Corey pointed his finger at Lucy and Jena, both looking smug and proud of themselves.

"Meddlers!" Hermione gasped, "The professor hates meddlers!"

"Well, that's Luce and Jena's full time job. Crap, Severus hasn't seen her yet."

Gina snorted, "Georgie has. He's letting the chicken burn! Georgie!" She stood and ran over to him, set on saving the food and not too concerned with the fact that she had just brought attention to that part of the yard.

Severus looked amused for a half a second as he watched Gina try to salvage the food, then he caught sight of Lizzie Grace, flawless in jeans and black heels, her black shirt tight and showing curves, and her trademark silver hoops swinging with the hair Severus himself always found hard to resist touching. His breath caught in his throat. Even after all these years, she still made him feel like he was an incompetent schoolboy.

Her gaze shifted through the yard, purposeful, she was searching for something. Her eyes stopped on Severus. And there it was.

Her stride was always sure, confident, and sexy as hell and always melted Severus to the spot where he stood. She looked at him and only him when she walked right passed the trio who sat with mouth hanging open and passed the two meddlers who looked more than slightly proud of themselves.

When she stopped in front of Severus, she paused only briefly before slapping him clear across the face. Hermione jolted and Lucy cursed under her breath. It was short lived though, as soon as she slapped him, she raised her hand to hit him again when Severus grabbed her arm, pulled her close, and kissed her. The arm fell around his neck.

Only the whopping from the backyard brought them apart, it was only a startled second however, as Lizzie grabbed him and kissed him again. Simultaneously, they both flipped off the rest of the guests. Even the laughter couldn't tear them apart this time.

* * *

Baylor and Severus handled the bigger fireworks with much more caution than bottle rockets. And though they sipped beer in-between lights, they made sure that the house and ground around them were hosed down and kept their cigarettes a safe distance from the firecrackers. Even with Lizzie wrapped around his waist, Severus made sure not to be distracted. Color lit up the sky with bright explosions and the teens - the trio, Baylor's daughters, Jay, Corey, and the other kids - laughed and applauded from blankets laid on the ground and ancient lawn chairs. They ate ice cream and mud pie as well as strawberries and blueberries doused in whipped cream and firecracker ice pops. They sipped root beer from old-fashioned glass bottles and when their fill was had, they lay black on the soft blankets to watch the rest of Severus and Baylor's impromptu firework display.

The finale went off loudly and the color splashed across Harry's face in bursts of light as he watched the beautiful explosions envelop the sky. The glow reflected off his glasses and the scent of burnt gun power lingered in his nose. The night was perfect.

As a huge red firework exploded above them, Harry shyly blushed and looked away. The firework illuminated Lizzie and Severus as they kissed under the glow. Harry caught the eyes of his best friends and snickered, who would ever have thought it?

When the final firework began to fade, the entire backyard broke out in cheers. Harry whooped and clapped loudly, laughing and still wiping dessert from the corners of his mouth. When Severus plopped down on the blanket next to him with his own ice pop, Harry poked fun at the drippings of sweets running down his professor's chin and onto the absurd blinking ornament, which, at some point, stopped blinking. He had finally detached himself Lizzie and she now stood talking with Lucy and Jena, laughing and hitting their arms as they exclaimed, wildly, how happy they were that she was back.

"Hey, Sev, show the kid some sparklers and morning glories, won't ya?" Georgie called out and walked over. He handed Severus two boxes and a lighter. Severus licked up the rest of his ice pop and stood. Hermione was already showing Ron how to work the sparklers and the redhead was writing his name in the air with it.

Severus lit a sparkler and handed it to Harry. "Move it through the air." Harry stared at the sparkling stick and moved it quickly; laughing out right at the laser like streak it left only briefly. When the sparkler burnt out, Severus lit another. Harry took it with confidence and spun around, all the while watching the light trail after his hand. He spun faster and faster, growing dizzy with joy. It was like muggle magic.

The sparkler smoldered and went out but he kept spinning, high on his happiness. When he stopped, he stumbled, but Severus caught the small body and lifted him over his shoulder. "Special delivery!" he cracked as he marched toward the pool.

"Don't you dare! Severus!" Shrieking, Harry was dumped into the pool, clothes and all. He held onto his glasses, making sure he didn't lose them in the water. When he surfaced, he heard the deep and rich laugh of Severus. "You suck!"

But his professor only grinned and took a half step back, poised himself, and lunged into the pool. "Cannon ball!" He barely had time to surface before Lucy was kicking off her flip-flops and jumping into the pool in her clothes as well.

There was a battle cry, a loud 'AY AY AY AYYYY!' as Lizzie ran and dove on top of Severus.

Harry laughed and ducked when Baylor joined in and jumped over him, splashing and tossing Gina, who had jumped after him, over his shoulder. Harry yelled out excitedly as half the backyard, including Hermione and Ron, all dived into the pool in their clothes.

The underwater lights in the in-ground pool shimmied with the moving water; briefly dimming out when someone swam passed them. The lit tiki lamps wavered and the smell of citronella mingled with the scent of chorine. Looking around, Harry watched quietly; he was enjoying the moment. Steam lifted from the heated water and swirled up and around him.

Someone swam behind him, grabbed him, and lifted him in the air. He only saw Severus briefly before he had to suck in his breath and hold his nose and glasses before he was tossed in the air. Moments after he surfaced, Hermione landed next to him. She shrieked and flailed as she sailed into the water and Harry wasted no time in pouncing on her. Without hesitation, Ron lunged and tackled Harry. They splashed loudly at each other, leaning back to kick their feet to make bigger splashes.

The rest of the night blurred together as Harry swam until he was too tired to even lift himself from the pool. The other children had long since disappeared inside. Wrapped in towels that Severus placed a heating charm on, the trio dried themselves as quickly as they could, shedding their wet jeans and covering themselves with towels. Their giggles were tired but enthusiastic and when they were finally ushered inside, they found Gina, Michelle, and the other kids snuggled up in sleeping bags in the living room.

In dry clothes, they lay under the top sheet only, the three best friends, snuggled in one bed, listening to the adults talk and the fire pit crack through the window. In the distance, they sometimes heard more fireworks going off and the occasional burst of laughter from the patio.

All too soon though, the voices dimmed, and smelling faintly of chlorine, they drifted off one by one, smiles still playing on their lips.

* * *

A knock sounded on the door early in the morning, rousing the occupants of the house. Harry, refreshed from such a deep swim induced sleep, crept out of the bedroom and peered over the banister into the living room and front hall. Baylor, surprisingly, was sleeping on the couch. That meant Severus was in his room alone and…Oh. Harry snickered; Lizzie was in there too. He was about the answer the door himself after the visitor knocked again, louder. But Georgie jogged passed him and down the steps. Harry moved so he could obtain a better view of the door. He was partially hidden by a rather large plant, but the position offered him the best view, still though, he could not clearly see all he wanted.

Georgie opened the door, "Hello?"

"I am looking for Severus Snape."

Harry instantly recognized the voice that belonged to the man hidden from his sight by Georgie's broad body. He felt the blood run from his face. His heart dropped.

Georgie, obviously, had no clue who he was. "And you would be who? Certainly not the President. It's 7 in the morning, come back later."

"I know he is here and my business is urgent. You will send for him immediately."

"No. This is my house, I'll wake my guest when I see fit!" Georgie sternly said.

"Out of my way old man, or there will be consequences."

"You can put your wand away, there is no business shoving that thing in my face!"

Ron crept up next to Harry and whispered, "Who is it?" Harry turned a white face toward his friend. "Harry? Mate, you okay?"

The voice at the door grew loud and angry, "You will tell Severus that I am here right this instant. Do not make me use this!"

Georgie brought his shoulders up, "And whom should I say is calling?"

There was a pause and then the deep and silky voice replied, "Lucius Malfoy."

* * *

I can say this: I loved writing this chapter because it brought me back to my own childhood and the summer parties we had, most notably the Fourth of July. Everyone should experience a BBQ for the fourth at least once in their lives. :) Please review!


End file.
